A Killeen man now faces intoxication manslaughter and drunk driving charges in connection with a fatal accident a few weeks ago on a frontage road near Interstate 35. The accident happened in Georgetown, Texas, which is less than one hour from the Killeen and Fort Hood areas.
According to reports, police responded to the scene of an accident in the early morning hours. During their investigation police determined the man had struck a parked semi. The semi had a right to be on the shoulder of the road, and the truck driver had left the lights of the truck on.
The man was taken to a nearby hospital. While it is not clear whether police or medical personnel drew the man’s blood, police are now claiming he had a blood alcohol content of .133, which is over the legal limit. Sadly, the passenger riding in the Malibu the man was driving died at the scene of the accident. The victim was 20 years old.
DUI/DWI charges become all the more serious whenever they arise in connection with an accident. In this case, a man is looking at up to 20 years in prison for what at worst was a terrible error in judgement, as there was no indication the man crashed his vehicle on purpose.
Moreover, this story raises some interesting questions that may apply to other, less serious drunk driving cases in Killeen and Fort Hood. For instance, it could be valuable information to know whether medical staff drew the man’s blood and under whose direction they did so.
It would also be interesting to know what time the accident actually occurred. These are the sorts of questions an experienced DUI defense attorney would think to ask in the face of serious allegations.