The Masters golf tournament is one of the largest sporting events to hit the Gwinnett county area. People come to our little town from all over the world to watch some of the best compete for the chance to win the title. While it should be a joyous occasion, it wasn’t for one man and 18 passengers on his bus when it overturned last month. The driver has since been charged with DUI related to the crash and several people were also hospitalized with injuries from the crash.
It occurred on Gwinnett county’s I-20 when the charter bus the man was driving flipped around the mile marker 186. According to Georgia State Patrol, the bus ran off the side of the road on the right and then proceeded to overcorrect back to the left. This then caused the bus to overturn on the median. The driver has been charged with DUI-drugs and failure to maintain lane. It isn’t known which drug allegedly impaired the man to safely operate the vehicle.
DUI is a serious charge to be facing, but even more so with the injuries associated with them. Since DUI can be charged as a misdemeanor or as a felony, depending on several circumstances, the fact that people’s lives were in danger and were impacted as a result may impact how harshly the prosecution seeks to charge the man. According to passengers interviewed by Highway Patrol, the bus driver had allegedly swerved a few times prior to the actual accident when the bus lost control.
At the scene, the accused allegedly said that a tire in the road caused him to lose control of the bus, but that hasn’t yet been confirmed or denied. The driver is certainly innocent until proven guilty, but DUI charges in connection with a car accident can have serious ramifications if convicted. Even being accused of drunk driving or DUI can have impacts on a person’s life. That being said, one has the right to build a criminal defense against such accusations.
Source: gwinnettdailypost.com, “Charter bus from Gwinnett crashes traveling to the Masters, driver charged with DUI,” April 5, 2018
