Defense lawyer in jogger hit and run case says client doesn't recall incident

Joyce Howard (Rochester Police photo)

DOVER - A woman accused in an October hit and run that left a Rochester man with severe spinal injuries has no recollection of the incident, her lawyer said during a court hearing on Tuesday.

Defense attorney Alfred T. Catalfo III told the court that Joyce Howard, 69, "has no recall" of the collision.

Catalfo said DNA samples from the undercarriage of his client's car was sent to a lab for analysis, but is still not back.

Prosecutor Emily Conant Garod said it could be months more before the state receives it. She said in the last case she handled involving DNA it took almost a year to get the results.

Catalfo called a recent plea offer made by the state premature given the lack of the DNA findings.

Matt Lefebvre was jogging a little before 6 a.m. on Oct. 11 when he was struck while crossing a street near Burger King on North Main Street.

He suffered three spinal cord injuries, nine broken ribs, a broken sternum and clavicle, a punctured lung, nerve damage to his left side and a severe laceration that went from ear to ear on top of his head that took 25 staples to stop the bleeding.

Howard, 69, of McDuffee Street, Rochester, was charged with conduct after an accident, a Class B felony, which carries a three and a half to seven year prison term if found guilty.

Meanwhile, Lefebvre continues his recovery at home. At a January benefit held at the Governor's Inn he told The Rochester Voice he was moving around with little pain and getting better day by day.

Strafford Superior Court Judge Mark E. Howard scheduled a trial for February of next year.

An indictment deadline has been set for next month.