A Month After Women Hit, Dragged 17-Year-old Riley Rawlins, Dallas Police Make an Arrest

Several Friends of Unfair Park have been asking, repeatedly: When will Dallas Police arrest the 19-year-old woman who, on January 7, hit 17-year-old Riley Rawlins as he crossed Royal Lane, near Audelia Road, to meet some friends at the Sonic there. It's a question that's been repeated again and again...

By Robert Wilonsky

February 3, 2012

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Several Friends of Unfair Park have been asking, repeatedly: When will Dallas Police arrest the 19-year-old woman who, on January 7, hit 17-year-old Riley Rawlins as he crossed Royal Lane, near Audelia Road, to meet some friends at the Sonic there. It's a question that's been repeated again and again since the incident, especially since, according to police, the woman didn't have insurance or a license and admitted to hitting the Lake Highlands High School junior -- and then dragging him 400 feet. Craig Watkins, the Dallas County District Attorney, was noncommittal when asked by The News a few days ago whether an arrest was coming:

"If we do indict it, it's going to be a coin toss," District Attorney Craig Watkins said last week. He said questions about the driver's speed and whether Riley was jaywalking are complicating the case.

But, at last, an arrest has been made. This just in from the Dallas Police Department:

The suspect in the January 7, 2012, fatality accident, in which Riley Rawlins was killed while crossing the road at 9900 Royal Lane, was arrested at her home today and transported to Lew Sterrett Jail. She has been identified as Soraya Villanueva L/M/7-25-93. She will be charged with Criminally Negligent Homicide with a bond set at $125,000.

Robert Wilonsky

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