A 21-year-old woman in Austin is facing serious charges after a man on a moped was killed in the early morning of Feb. 9. Texas police responded to the fatal accident and were given to believe the driver may have been intoxicated at the time of the crash. In addition to DWI charges, she also faces charges of manslaughter and failure to render aid. No court date was reported.
The accident happened around 3 a.m. when police responded to a call about a man who had allegedly been struck by a vehicle. They found a 46-year-old man who was unresponsive and suffering from extreme injuries. He was later pronounced dead at the scene.
Police initially believed the man was a pedestrian, but upon following a trail of debris that allegedly led to the woman’s home, they found his moped lodged under the front of her SUV. Police noted front-end damage and blood splatter consistent with the deceased man’s injuries. The woman was taken into custody and charged after admitting to consuming six to nine alcoholic mixed drinks before driving home from a bar. She told police she thought she had struck a dead animal, which is why she did not stop to render aid.
While this is doubtless a monstrous tragedy, the first rule of American criminal law is that a defendant is presumed innocent until — and only if — proven guilty. This is why, including with DWI charges, the burden of proof lies with Texas prosecutors to provide compelling evidence of her guilt. Her defense team will carefully examine any evidence pertaining to her alleged intoxication to assess whether it is admissible in court.
Source: kxan.com, “Moped of man hit, killed by suspected drunk driver was lodged under vehicle“, Rosemond Crown, Feb. 11, 2018
