HAVERHILL — This week, prosecutors had planned a second attempt to convict Marie Pigaga on motor vehicle homicide charges in the death of a Danville, N.H., mother outside a local car wash two years ago.

Pigaga's second trial had been scheduled to start on Tuesday in Haverhill District Court, but has been postponed to mid-January.

Stephen O'Connell, spokesman for the District Attorney's Office, said the trial had to be put off because the state's expert witness, a state police lieutenant and crash reconstruction expert, will not be available until January.

"We expect that this witness will be available on the scheduled trial date of Jan. 12," O'Connell said.

Pigaga, 48, of 8 Middle Road, Plaistow, faces a charge of motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation in the death of Robin Young, 43, of Danville.

In Pigaga's first trial, which ended in a hung jury on April 3, she faced the charge of motor vehicle homicide by reckless operation. The trial ended after six jurors could not reach a verdict. Judge Stephen Abany declared a mistrial when the jury said it was hopelessly deadlocked.

Assistant District Attorney Christopher Holland subsequently gained a judge's approval to amend the charge from motor vehicle homicide by reckless operation to motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation.

The legal definition of reckless would have required prosecutors to convince a jury that Pigaga knew the way she was driving could seriously injure or kill someone.

Young died June 18, 2007, after the car driven by Pigaga struck her at Haffner's gas station on Route 125 near the Haverhill-Plaistow line shortly after 1 p.m., police said. Young was wiping off her GMC Denali after taking it through Haffner's car wash. Her 12-year-old daughter Taylor was in the vehicle when Young was hit by Pigaga's car.

Pigaga told police her brakes and steering failed just before her 2000 Mercedes-Benz SLK230 coupe jumped a 2-foot-high retaining wall in front of Haffner's, traveled about 50 feet, and hit Young. Subsequent inspections showed that both systems functioned properly, police said.

In August, lawyers involved in the case said a civil lawsuit against Pigaga had been settled.

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