A Summerdale man accused of leading Baldwin County deputies on a chase that ended in a fatal crash in Foley tested positive for both alcohol and marijuana, an investigator testified at a preliminary hearing.
The 30-year-old defendant is accused of running a red light at Alabama 59 and Azalea Avenue and slamming a pickup truck into a car driven by a 42-year-old Foley man, who died in the crash. A Daphne Police Department detective, assigned to the Baldwin County Major Crimes Task Force, testified that hospital blood tests taken after the wreck came back positive for alcohol and marijuana, with additional samples still pending further analysis from the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences.
According to testimony, the chain of events began when a Baldwin County Sheriff’s lieutenant, driving an unmarked vehicle, noticed the pickup speeding south in a turning lane on Alabama 59 and passing other vehicles. The lieutenant activated his siren and lights and pulled alongside the truck, identifying himself and telling the driver he was being stopped for reckless driving. Instead of stopping, the driver said he intended to continue on to a nearby restaurant and could be stopped there, according to testimony.
When the driver failed to pull over, additional marked patrol units joined the pursuit. The detective testified that the driver briefly stopped at a red light, then sped off again when a deputy approached on foot, cutting through an apartment complex parking lot at roughly 50 mph and a grocery store parking lot at about 40 mph before returning to Alabama 59. The truck ultimately collided with the victim’s car at the Azalea Avenue intersection, then struck a light pole and overturned.
The driver ran from the wreck but was quickly captured by deputies, who testified they could smell alcohol on his breath at the scene.
Following the hearing, a district judge ruled there was sufficient probable cause for the case to proceed to a Baldwin County grand jury. The defendant faces charges including manslaughter, attempting to elude police, reckless endangerment and driving with a suspended license. He remains held at the Baldwin County Corrections Center.
A Baldwin County assistant district attorney said prosecutors intend to pursue the case aggressively, emphasizing the fatal consequences of the pursuit regardless of intent. The crash and the criminal case remain under review as it heads toward grand jury consideration.