A Stone Mountain, Georgia, woman has recently been indicted on 13 counts after she allegedly hit an Atlanta police officer with her car, causing the officer's death. While a drunk driving charge is certainly serious, being charged with the death of a police officer makes it very easy for the prosecution to vilify a suspect. One of the tenants of the American legal system is that everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty, but certain high-touch topics like the death of a police officer makes it very difficult to find an impartial or unbiased jury.

The 22-year-old woman is sitting in the Fulton County Jail and has been denied bond. While she awaits a trial in the Fulton County Superior Court, her criminal defense attorney will work to find a group of people who will not find her guilty based purely off the nature of the alleged crime.

Late last month, the young woman was driving on an interchange ramp between Interstates 75 south and 85 north when, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, she hit the senior officer. The officer was apparently trying to help another Atlanta police officer with a single-vehicle crash when media reports say the 22-year-old hit her.

The young woman immediately stopped and the uninjured officer put her under arrest. Police claim that the woman took a breath test and that her blood alcohol level was above the legal limit of 0.08.

A grand jury indicted the young woman on various criminal charges, including possession of an open container of alcoholic beverage while operating a vehicle, driving under the influence of alcohol, driving under the influence of drugs, first degree vehicular homicide and reckless driving.

Source: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "Driver indicted in death of Atlanta police officer," Angel K. Brooks, Feb. 7, 2012