FRUITDALE — A Brown County man who crashed his car near his home on LaSalle Road told police he had had at least 10 beers before the crash, police say.
At around 6 p.m. May 14, Mark A. Wellman, 55, came around a curve at a high rate of speed and entered his driveway.
Wellman’s wife, who was in the car with him, told police that their vehicle struck a stone retaining wall, then continued down the driveway where it struck a tree head-on, the accident report by Brown County Sheriff’s Deputy Josh Stargell says.
Wellman was taken to Johnson Memorial Hospital for injuries to his arm.
Stargell wrote that Wellman admitted to consuming 10 to 12 beers before the crash. He reported smelling alcohol on Wellman, that he had red/watery eyes, slurred speech and unsteady balance, and that he saw alcoholic beverages in the vehicle.
Stargell was granted a search warrant for a blood draw. The results were not noted in the police report or probable-cause affidavit.
Wellman was later arrested and taken to the Brown County jail.
On May 15, he was charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated — endangering a person, a Class A misdemeanor; and operating a vehicle with an ACE of 0.15 or more, a Class A misdemeanor.
