Teen pleads not guilty in deadly crash

BARTLESVILLE - An 18-year-old Bartlesville man has pleaded not guilty to a negligent homicide charge stemming from a traffic accident that left two Chouteau women dead.

Bail was set at $1,500 for James Dawson Eckhart.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol says Eckhart's 2002 Ford pickup failed to stop at a stop sign March 28 south of Bartlesville and collided with a 1998 Ford driven by James Ashley.

Ashley's passengers, 61-year-old Betty Day Ashley and 54-year-old Joana Hannah, died at the scene.

Eckhart is set to return to Washington County District Court on June 16.