Toxicology tests confirmed that drunk driver Jeremy Smeltzer who drove the wrong way in the southbound lane of U.S. 131 near Kalamazoo on April 15, 2014 and killed a driver driving the correct direction on the express-way had an blood alcohol content that was more than 2 1/2 times the legal limit for driving of 0.08 (it measured 0.214 percent). The Michigan State Police laboratory test was released Friday, May 16th, 2014 to the Kalamazoo Gazette after they filed a request under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act. The Michigan State Police also released the trooper’s car video that captured an image of the drunk driver speeding past the trooper’s squad car seconds before causing the deadly crash. This video is very disturbing because it vividly captures the senseless moment before two people were violently killed due to the utter stupidity of a drunk driver. The video also reminds us of the extremely dangerous situation that our Michigan State Troopers must face in the moments after such a fiery crash.
Go to this link to see the Michigan State Police dash-cam video of this crash. Hopefully, the release of this disturbing dash-cam video will further discourage drunk driving by forcefully bring the reality of the potential tragic results to the fore-front of people’s minds.