Authorities in Washington County were left with few courses of action after a 53-year-old Jonesborough, Tennessee, man died on Aug. 26.
The man had been facing charges of reckless endangerment and vehicular homicide over his involvement in a July 2010 crash that left a 56-year-old woman dead and three other people injured. But of course, his death meant there was no one to charge, so the allegations have been dropped.
As we pointed out, there seems to be little that authorities can do when presented with facts such as these. However, it is disappointing that this case did not make it to its own conclusion; it seems this was a drunk driving accident, and it’s very important to everyone involved that such incidents come to a just and fair resolution.
The man’s attorney was the one who informed the court of his client’s death. He did not say what had caused the man’s demise, other than that it was “unexpected.”
The accident occurred when the man was driving his pickup truck down Fordtown Road when he swerved into the opposite lane and struck a Dodge Caravan. The collision left the woman dead. Her 53-year-old husband, 27-year-old son and an 18-month-old girl were badly hurt. The man was also critically injured in the collision.
Subsequent testing of blood samples taken at the scene by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation revealed the man’s blood-alcohol content to be .25. The legal limit in Tennessee is 0.08, as it is in all states.
Source: Johnson City Press, “Charges dropped due to death of defendant,” Becky Campbell, Sept. 5, 2012