A Port Townsend woman who was involved in a fatality car crash last year on U.S. Highway 101 was not under the influence at the time of the collision and won’t be charged by prosecutors, according to her attorney.

Juan Porcel, 38, was killed in a three-car collision on US 101 outside Sequim on Feb. 22, 2020.

Porcel was a passenger in a 1993 Subaru Impreza that had stopped on the highway to turn left. The Subaru was hit from behind by Cynthia Blackwell, 70, of Port Townsend. The Impreza went into the oncoming lane where it was struck by a 2010 Subaru Forester driven by Christoper Walton of Marysville.

The Washington State Patrol said at the time that drugs or alcohol might have been a factor in the crash, and noted that charges were pending.

Alexandrea Schodowski, an attorney representing Blackwell, said in a letter that the State Patrol’s suspicions that Blackwell was under the influence “were disproven on Dec. 9, 2020, after forensic scientists at the Washington State Patrol Toxicology Lab concluded that her blood was negative for any and all controlled substances and alcohol.”

“Moreover, according to Detective [Krista] Hedstrom of the Washington State Patrol, law enforcement will not be referring the matter to the Clallam County Prosecutor’s Office for criminal charges,” Schodowski added.

Schodowski’s letter included the results of the Washington State Patrol’s toxicology test report for Blackwell.

The two-page report, dated Dec. 9, noted a series of blood tests conducted by the WSP lab in Seattle for the presence of drugs or other substances that would indicate someone was under the influence of alcohol. No such substances were detected.

Schodowski’s letter, dated Jan. 5, was provided to The Leader last week by Blackwell.