Harnett County Deputy Indicted For Manslaughter For Wreck In Chase That Killed Two

By Robert Jordan
Dunn Daily Record

HARNETT COUNTY – The Harnett County Grand Jury met on Monday and returned two true bills of indictment for involuntary manslaughter against a Harnett County Sheriff’s Office deputy in the motor vehicle deaths of a Minnesota couple.

Deputy Kevin Joseph LeTarte, 36, struck the couple’s truck while chasing a speeding vehicle on N.C. Highway 210 near Spring Lake at 2:01 p.m. Friday, March 3. Brian Finch, 65, and his wife, Patricia Finch, 64, died from injuries sustained in the crash.

They were crossing Highway 210 on Ray Road under a green traffic light when LeTarte’s patrol car crashed into the truck’s passenger door at an estimated 77 mph. Traffic lights were red in the deputy’s direction of travel.

Video cameras show the truck spinning 180 degrees during the crash and slamming backwards into a steel utility pole. Paramedics transported Brian Finch to a hospital, but he died during transport. Patricia Finch died at the scene.

LeTarte’s cruiser came to a stop in front of the black RAM truck. The deputy, who has been a member of the Harnett County Sheriff’s Office since 2017, is a K9 handler. His K9 was with him at the time of the crash, but was uninjured. Letarte was transported to Womack Army Hospital with serious, but survivable injuries.

At the time of the incident, Harnett County Sheriff Wayne Coats told The Daily Record that he had requested the North Carolina State Highway Patrol investigate the crash. At the same juncture, he requested the State Bureau of Investigation to conduct an investigation into any factors leading up to and including the tragedy. Coats explained he wanted complete transparency in the investigations of his deputy and his agency with regard to the crash.

LeTarte was placed on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of the investigation.