By: Dave Nethers, Fox 8 News

January 28, 2010

BROOK PARK, Ohio — A local truck driver has been charged with second-degree manslaughter, accused of causing a fatal accident in Buffalo, New York last month.

Investigators say 45-year-old Thomas Wallace, of Brook Park, was distracted by pornography he was watching on his lap-top computer at the time of the accident.

They also say he had no more than about 4 hours of sleep in the previous 27 hours, which is a violation of federal trucking rules.

According to authorities, Wallace hit the car in which 33-year-old Julie Stratton of Snyder, New York was sitting.

Police say that Stratton had just hit a deer. Her damaged car was sitting in a lane on an open stretch of highway when it was struck.

Shortly after the accident, Stratton’s family pleaded for Buffalo area residents — who saw the accident — to come forward.

“I’m always looking for the truth and I’m sure it will be revealed,” said her emotional father Brian Dopkin.

Captain Michael Nigrelli of the New York State Police tells Fox 8 News the road was clear on the day of the accident. “Visibility was fine, there was no snow on the roads.”

Nigrelli says other vehicles were able to see and avoid Stratton, but investigators believe Wallace’s eyes were not on the road.

Wallace is being held in the Genesee County Jail in New York on a $50,000 cash bond.