Truck driver charged with DUI in fatal crash on I-75 near London

The Laurel County Sheriff’s Office reports that one person is dead and another has been charged with DUI in connection to an early morning crash on Tuesday that happened on I-75 southbound near mile marker 46.

According to the sheriff’s office, an investigation revealed that a tractor-trailer was in the middle lane, traveling southbound, when it was struck from the rear by a Nissan Altima.

As a result, the sheriff’s office says the driver of the car, identified by the Laurel County Coroner’s Office as 30-year-old William Darnell, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver of the tractor-trailer, identified as 54-year-old Steven Patrick Jones of Ohio, was taken to St. Joseph Hospital London for treatment for possible injuries and the execution of a search warrant for blood testing. According to an arrest citation, Patrick admitted to using cocaine withing the 24 hours before the collision.

The sheriff’s office says that, as a result of the blood test Patrick was charged with DUI and lodged in the Laurel County Detention Center.

Credit: LEX18/Laurel County Sheriff’s Office