(La Porte County, IN) - A man is accused of driving drunk when he crashed into two parked vehicles then a garage at a house near Rolling Prairie.
Brenda Depoy, 65, said she was smoking a cigarette inside her attached garage Thursday night. Suddenly, the suspect crashed through her overhead garage door and hit the back end of a third parked vehicle, her 2017 Dodge Ram, which was inside the building.
Fortunately, she was away and to the side of the 16 foot wide garage door when the vehicle busted through it, missing her by just a few feet. “I began screaming for my husband. It’s a mess,” she said.
Kyle Barnes, 32, of Rolling Prairie is charged in La Porte Superior Court 3 with Class A misdemeanor operating while intoxicated. His alleged blood alcohol level was .19 percent, well above the .08 percent legal limit.
According to La Porte County Police, the accident happened about 8:30 p.m. in the 5100 block of N. 600 East. Barnes told investigators he was talking to his girlfriend, who was in the front passenger seat, when he lost control of the vehicle.
According to police, Barnes said he tried correcting his steering but was unable to. He went on to strike the pick-up trucks in the driveway before crashing into the garage. David Depoy, 67, said he was lying on a couch in the living room and didn’t see the suspect coming. However, the sound of impact quickly got his attention.
“I heard him when he hit,” he said.
Depoy said numerous bricks from the exterior of the garage were left strewn inside and outside the structure. He said some of the exterior bricks from his residence were also knocked loose. One of the outside walls on the garage was bowed, forcing him to use plywood to close gaps in the structure.
The dust from the crashes hadn’t settled yet when Depoy said he began asking himself “why me. You know what I mean?”
Depoy said he’s already been in touch with his insurance company about paying for all of the repairs. He believes one or two of the vehicles will be ruled a total loss.
Police said Barnes admitted to consuming four whiskey drinks in one hour at a nearby bar prior to the crash. He was also given a summons to appear in court on a charge of failing to provide proof of insurance on his vehicle.
