SMITHFIELD - The state Highway Patrol will not file charges against the motorist who struck and killed a Four Oaks woman this week, authorities announced Friday.

Donna Baker, 22, of 1505 Elevation Road was struck by a 2001 Oldsmobile on Tuesday evening while walking down rural Old School Road with her boyfriend and their child, Skylar Baker, the state Highway Patrol reported.

The patrol consulted with the Johnston County District Attorney's Office on Friday to determine whether charges should be filed against the motorist.

The district attorney decided not to file charges because Baker was walking in the road facing away from oncoming traffic, Sgt. C.A. White, a patrol spokesman, said Friday.

"According to the driver, the sun was in his eyes and he never saw the people until he was right on top of them," White said.

Baker died Tuesday night at Duke Hospital, where she had been flown by helicopter, said Bell.

Baker's boyfriend, Michael Beaver, 23, also of 1505 Elevation Road, was injured but did not require treatment, Bell said. Skylar Baker was not injured, troopers said.

The accident occurred at 6:21 p.m. about two miles from the family's home, troopers said.

Highway Patrol Sgt. K.D. Bell said the three were walking west when Baker was struck from behind. Neither speed nor alcohol were factors in the accident.

A funeral service for Baker is scheduled for 2 p.m. today at Minshew Funeral Home in Four Oaks, according to an obituary that appeared Friday in The Herald of Smithfield. She will be buried at Parkertown Cemetery in Four Oaks, a funeral home representative said Friday.