CHARLESTON, W.Va – A new trial date is set in the case of a man accused in a fatal hit and run while fleeing police that has been delayed numerous times over the last five years.
Che Dushon Lark appeared before Judge Carrie Webster in Kanawha County Circuit Court on Monday and is scheduled to be tried on December 8, due to Lark retaining new counsel.
Lark faces 12 charges for an alleged incident in which he struck and killed Heather Ross with his car in 2020 while attempting to evade police following a traffic stop. According to statements made in court, Lark allegedly was found in the vehicle, parked in a homeowner’s driveway. with drugs in plain view.
When officers attempted to arrest him, he allegedly drove off and lead police on a chase that ended when he hit Ross with the car before fleeing the scene. Ross died a few days later.
He was later arrested in Chillicothe, Ohio, found hiding in an attic, possessing a fake Michigan driver’s license, and gave law enforcement a fake name when he was arrested.
Lark was placed on home confinement after posting bond but was arrested again on drug charges after police received information that he was distributing drugs and using a female accomplice to deliver narcotics.
The case has been delayed several times already due to federal charges against Lark stemming from the same incident. In May 2024. he was sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty a charge of possession with intent to distribute heroin and methamphetamine.
According to statements made in court Monday, Lark is now appealing that sentence on the grounds that he was advised the cap on the sentence he could face for pleading guilty was lower than the maximum sentence he ultimately received.
Additionally, attorneys from both sides confirmed before Judge Webster that the state offered a plea agreement that has not yet been accepted. That offer specifies that, if it is accepted, a sentence in circuit court would run concurrently with the federal sentence.
Lark appeared in court wearing dark sunglasses and his attorney, Bunmi Kusimo-Frazier, says he is not receiving necessary medical care for an eye condition, as well as swelling in his legs, while housed at the South Central Regional Jail.
Lark’s criminal history includes at least nine convictions in West Virginia, Michigan, Minnesota, and Tennessee.