Driver Faces DUI Charge After Dec. 27 Crash Injures Elderly Man

Warwick, RI — A West Warwick man is facing a DUI charge after he crashed his white Saturn into a 2010 Red Toyota Camry driven by a 69-year-old woman, injuring her 72-year-old husband on West Shore Road Dec. 27.

Warwick officer Nicholas DiNardo was among the officers called to the corner of West Shore Road and Walter St. for a report of a crash between the two vehicles, seeing another officer already speaking with a trio standing near the Saturn, which had come to a stop partway on the sidewalk in the eastbound breakdown lane just east of Walter Street, DiNardo reported.

The trio included the Saturn’s driver, Oliver King, 38, of 10 Nestor St., Apt. A7, West Warwick, and his two passengers. King told DiNardo he was driving west on West Shore Road near Walter Street when the Camry pulled out of the side street, causing the collision. He also told the officer that his license was suspended, DiNardo said in his report.

As the officer spoke with him, DiNardo noted in his report that King appeared unsteady on his feet, that his eyes were bloodshot and his speech was slurred. and there was a strong odor of alcohol on his breath.

As DiNardo spoke with King’s passengers, he saw the driver kick a piece of debris in the road and fall backward two steps, according to his report.

King refused to take sobriety tests, and DiNardo arrested him on suspicion of Driving Under the Influence of alcohol.

Officer Manuel Pacheco spoke with the driver of the Saturn, who said she had seen the Camry approaching as she pulled into the road , but it had seemed as if there was enough time to make the turn safely. The Saturn hit the woman’s car, however, striking the rear passenger’s side corner as she made it three quarters of the way across the road. The strike spun her car around to face east in the westbound lane.

The woman’s 72-year-old husband, riding in the rear of the car, was injured by an airbag that deployed during the crash and was bleeding, according to Pacheo’s report. Rescue personnel transported the couple to the hospital together so the husband could be treated.

King was transported to Warwick Police headquarters at 99 Veterans Memorial Drive, where he was charged with DUI involving bodily injury, first offense, and for driving with a suspended license. He was also issued violations for refusing a chemical test and for operating a vehicle with alcoholic beverages.

King is scheduled to answer the charges in Third District Court Feb. 15.