Elin Waithe, Quacy Waithe, Child Killed in Truck Accident in East Windsor, NJ

East Windsor, NJ — December 7, 2025, Elin Waithe, Quacy Waithe and a child were killed in a truck accident at about 1:40 p.m. on the New Jersey Turnpike/Interstate 95.

Authorities said an SUV was parked on the shoulder near mile marker 64.6 when it was hit by a southbound Peterbilt semi-truck.

SUV driver Elin R. Waithe, 44; Quacy Waithe, 47; and a child died from injuries suffered in the crash, according to authorities.

The truck driver suffered minor injuries, authorities said.

Authorities have not released any additional information about the Mercer County crash at this time.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

When people hear that an 18-wheeler slammed into a parked SUV on the shoulder of the highway, killing everyone inside, their first question is usually the most obvious one: How does something like that happen? If the SUV was pulled over off the main lanes, as reports suggest, then the burden falls on investigators to explain why the truck left its lane in the first place. Was the driver distracted? Asleep? Did something fail on the truck?

We don’t yet know.

What we do know is that three people, including a child, lost their lives, and the authorities haven’t said much beyond the basic facts. That silence may be standard in the early days of an investigation, but it leaves families and the public without crucial information. And from my experience with similar crashes, I can tell you that the difference between an unfortunate mistake and a preventable act of negligence is usually hidden in the evidence.

For example, many trucks today are equipped with in-cab cameras, which could show what the driver was doing in the moments before impact. If the driver was looking down at a phone, or reaching for something on the floor, that matters. Likewise, the truck’s engine control module (or “black box”) should show how fast the truck was going, whether the brakes were applied, and whether the driver made any steering input. That kind of data can make or break a case.

Phone records can also be obtained to determine whether the driver was on a call or texting. Was fatigue a factor? Did the driver veer onto the shoulder due to drowsiness? Only a full investigation, including a look at hours-of-service logs and the driver’s prior record, can answer that.

But beyond the truck and the driver, the company behind them should not be overlooked. Did they vet this driver properly before handing over the keys to an 80,000-pound vehicle? Did they train him on how to handle emergency situations, or on the basics of avoiding the shoulder in the first place? I once handled a case where a truck driver with multiple firings on his record was hired after nothing more than a 20-minute road test. That company was more focused on filling a seat than keeping the public safe, and the result was a crash that never should have happened.

In short, there are still far more questions than answers here. But the path to truth and accountability is well established: gather every piece of evidence, let the data speak and hold the right people responsible, whether that’s the driver, the company or both.

Key Takeaways:

• It’s not clear why the 18-wheeler veered onto the shoulder and hit the parked SUV. Evidence is needed to determine fault.
• In-cab cameras, black box data and phone records can help reconstruct what the truck driver was doing at the time.
• The trucking company’s hiring, training and oversight practices should be scrutinized as part of the investigation.
• Responsibility for crashes like this often extends beyond the driver to the people who put him behind the wheel.
• Without a full investigation, it’s impossible to know who should be held accountable, but that investigation needs to happen.