COVENTRY, Vt. (AP) – A 21-year-old Newport woman was run over and killed when a practical joke turned tragic on U.S. Route 5, police said.

Ashley Lewis was pronounced dead at North Country Hospital in Newport early Sunday, said state police Sgt. Kevin Charboneau.

Keith Gingue, 21, of Johnson, was charged with drunken driving after the incident.

Charboneau said Lewis was driving on Route 5 with three friends at about 1 a.m. Sunday when she stopped at a pull-off area so the women could relieve themselves.

Police said Lewis and Aimee Hopkins, 21, of Lyndonville, got out of the vehicle and left Gingue and another man in the vehicle.

While the women were relieving themselves, Gingue got into the driver’s seat and pulled the car ahead about 25 feet, running over Lewis, Charboneau said.

“He didn’t know the girl was squatting in front of the vehicle,” Charboneau said.

Lewis suffered massive internal injuries. She was pronounced dead at the hospital.

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Information from: The Caledonian-Record, http://www.caledonian-record.com

AP-ES-03-07-05 1504EST