Former astronaut pleads not guilty in deadly wreck
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — A former space shuttle commander has pleaded not guilty in a fatal wreck that killed two girls in Alabama.
Court records show 60-year-old James Halsell Jr. entered the written plea last week. The former astronaut is charged with reckless murder in a crash that killed two girls riding in a car near Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in June.
Authorities say they suspect alcohol was a factor. But Halsell’s lawyers filed a document in a civil lawsuit blaming the other driver for failing to yield.