AUGUSTA – A trucker from Caribou whose rig was involved in a collision that took the life of a 40-year-old Scarborough woman is offering an apology to her family, saying he would rather have died in last Friday’s crash.

Tina Turcotte died of injuries from the wreck along the Maine Turnpike in Hallowell. She had allowed a tractor to pass in front of her where the lanes merge near a construction site when the rear of her car was struck by a tractor-trailer, pushing Turcotte’s car under the first truck.

The driver of the tractor-trailer, Scott Hewitt, told the Portland Press Herald that the accident happened so quickly that he’s not sure of the details.

“All I know is I hit her and killed her, and I am very sorry,” the 32-year-old Hewitt said. “I’d rather be dead than her.”

Hewitt also said he didn’t know that he was driving with a suspended license at the time of the crash because he never received notification from the state.

Hewitt denied he did anything wrong, saying the construction warning signs were placed so close to the zone that he didn’t have enough time to slow down. But he said his days as a truck driver are over.

Speaking from his home, Hewitt said that even before the accident, he and his wife had decided that Friday’s trip to Portland in which he dropped off a load of broccoli was going to be his last run.

“I will not drive a tractor-trailer again in my life,” Hewitt said.

Hewitt’s driving record includes at least 42 convictions for driving offenses, including offenses related to a fatal accident 11 years ago, and 19 license suspensions. He was driving with a suspended license at the time of the crash.

The crash remains under investigation and authorities have not yet determined what charges, if any, they may bring against Hewitt. He was arrested at the scene on a charge of driving with a suspended license and released from Kennebec County Jail later Friday on $1,000 bail.

Hewitt is an independent contractor who owns his own truck. His wife was in the passenger’s seat at the time of the accident. Tracy Hewitt sustained a head cut in the accident.

Reacting to what Hewitt said, Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap said Hewitt is not taking responsibility for his action. When someone’s license is suspended, that person has a responsibility to comply.

In response to Hewitt saying he was not aware his license was suspended, the Secretary of State’s Office said Hewitt was notified multiple times by letter that both his driver’s license and commercial license were not valid. Letters provided by the Secretary of State’s Office confirmed Hewitt was notified.

“Why aren’t people paying attention to their own driving habits?” Dunlap said. “I read Hewitt’s grandmother saying he’s a good kid. He just had a string of bad luck. Killing two people in 10 years is not bad luck.”

Trucker safety advocate Daphne Izer of Lisbon said she was “shocked and angry” when she learned that Hewitt was involved in a second fatal accident in 10 years. “He should never have been on the road driving anything, let alone a commercial vehicle.” Izer and her husband, Steve, founded Parents Against Tired Truckers in 1993 after their son, Jeffrey, and three other teens were killed by a trucker. PATT is now a national safety organization.

“The blame lies with the driver totally,” Izer said. “He said ‘I’ll never drive again.’ That sounds familiar.” The driver who struck and killed their son said that, but later applied for his license, she said.

Izer complained that Hewitt “got a slap on the wrist” for the previous fatal accident while operating a truck with an unsafe load. “I couldn’t believe he killed again.”

Legislators and Gov. John Baldacci are calling for reviews of the crash and tougher laws.

Independent truckers “need to understand that Maine has a reputation for strong enforcement of commercial drivers,” Baldacci said. Baldacci asked state police Col. Craig Poulin, Dunlap, and Transportation Commissioner David Cole to review the crash and forward their recommendations to the Legislature. “This has my full attention,” Baldacci said.

Rep. Darlene Curley, R-Scarborough, introduced a bill Wednesday to improve highway safety. Co-sponsoring that bill is Rep. Jim Hamper, R-Oxford, who was in the car ahead of Turcotte’s when Hewitt’s truck struck.

“We want a full investigation of how and why a repeat offender with such an appalling record would ever be behind a wheel, putting us all at risk,” Curley said.

Sen. Bill Diamond, D-Windham, said that in four years alone, Hewitt had four license suspensions for serious violations. “We need to start talking about much longer suspensions” of five and 10 years. “We’re looking at clamping down quicker than what the law now requires.”

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