Driver charged with OWI after fatally striking pedestrian on Indiana Toll Road in Hammond, police say - Chicago News Weekly

Saturday, December 30, 2023

Driver charged with OWI after fatally striking pedestrian on Indiana Toll Road in Hammond, police say

A Northwest Indiana man was arrested on Friday afternoon after striking and killing a pedestrian whose vehicle had been involved in an earlier crash on the Indiana Toll Road, state police said.

At around 4:45 p.m., troopers with the Indiana State Police were called to the 0.9 mile marker of Interstate 90 eastbound near the WestPoint Toll Plaza. According to authorities, a gray Nissan SUV possibly hydroplaned and struck the concrete barrier dividing the eastbound and westbound lanes.

A man driving a white Lexus saw the initial crash and pulled over to assist the driver of the Nissan, who asked that he call 911. While he was on the phone with dispatchers, the driver of the Nissan exited her vehicle and began to walk across the interstate toward the Lexus, at which point she was struck by a Ford F-250 pickup truck.

State police said the pickup was traveling eastbound approaching the crash scene, when the driver made a sudden lane change to avoid striking the crashed Nissan. In doing so, he struck the driver of the Nissan, who was outside the vehicle. The woman, who hasn’t been identified, was pronounced dead at the scene by the Lake County Coroner’s Office.

After hitting the pedestrian, the pickup struck the Lexus that had pulled over to assist with the initial crash. Two passengers in the Lexus were treated for non-life threatening injuries, police stated. The driver wasn’t injured.

State troopers noticed the driver of the pickup was exhibiting signs of impairment, which prompted them to begin an OWI investigation. The driver, identified as Scott Schuch, 55, of Porter, Indiana, agreed to a blood draw, which was completed at an area hospital.

He was booked into the Lake County Jail on preliminary charges of operating while intoxicated causing death, a Level 5 felony, operating while intoxicated endangering, a Class A misdemeanor, reckless driving causing serious bodily injury, a Class A misdemeanor and operating while intoxicated, a Class C misdemeanor.



from NBC Chicago https://ift.tt/Y47dibM

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