Charleston, South Carolina, had gone nearly a month into the new year without a traffic fatality, but all that changed on Saturday when a drunk driver allegedly ran a stoplight and collided with another vehicle. The driver in question now faces felony charges of reckless homicide, driving under the influence resulting in great bodily injury and driving under the influence resulting in death.
The accident occurred at the intersection of Columbus and Meeting streets, blocks away from the waterfront, very early on Saturday morning. The 30-year-old male driver of a pickup truck allegedly ran a red light and crashed into a sedan headed through the intersection, hitting the sedan on the passenger side. The force of the collision reportedly caused the sedan to smash into a building on the corner of the intersection. When arriving at the hospital where the pickup driver was receiving treatment for injuries sustained in the collision, authorities arrested him upon allegedly finding him impaired.
Each vehicle contained occupants apart from its driver at the time of the crash. It is unclear how many passengers were inside the pickup truck, although the sedan reportedly contained four people. The driver of the sedan remains in the hospital in serious condition as a result of the collision, while the passenger in the sedan’s front seat, a 32-year-old visitor from Illinois, died at the scene. The other occupants of both vehicles sustained non-life-threatening injuries and have received treatment at the hospital.
One lapse in judgment has the potential to affect a person’s life forever. Therefore, those accused of drunk driving may find it helpful to seek the services of a defense attorney.