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State v. Drake6/6/2005
eceived when he was much younger. As a result, Mr. Wright depended on Ms. Burke to provide transportation to and from his place of employment at Kerns Bakery.
Mr. Wright testified that he worked the early morning shift, and on the day of the accident, he and Ms. Burke left their residence around 1:00 a.m. Along the way, the pair stopped at a convenience store, the Bread Box, on Pleasant Ridge Road, where Mr. Wright bought a pack of cigarettes. Mr. Wright estimated that the Bread Box was a quarter of a mile from the accident scene. After the stop, they re- entered Pleasant Ridge Road and encountered no other traffic at the time. Mr. Wright said that he saw a light as they approached the intersection at Deerfield Subdivision, where the road narrowed to two lanes. Mr. Wright gave varying descriptions of the light. On direct examination, he maintained that he could not distinctly identify the type of light. He could tell that the light was heading toward him, and he stated, "It was flashing back - like it was flashing back and forth, and I didn't know whether it was a caution light or what." He added that he thought the light was related to the Deerfield Park Subdivision. Later, in his direct examination testimony, Mr. Wright said that "it looked to like [an oncoming vehicle] was - he was in the ditch line [on the van's side of the road] coming to [them]."
Mr. Wright recalled the impact occurring at the subdivision intersection, after which he remembered little else other than attempting to remove Ms. Burke from the van and being transported to the hospital by ambulance. He insisted that he and Ms. Burke were in their proper lane of traffic when the two vehicles collided, and he estimated their speed to be between 30 to 35 miles per hour.
On cross-examination, Mr. Wright agreed that Pleasant Ridge Road is slightly inclined where it approaches the Deerfield Park Subdivision and that drivers traveling in both directions would encounter a "blind hill" at that location. Mr. Wright denied, however, telling the defense investigator that what he saw was "regular flashing lights," and he disclaimed saying" that the lights indicated to him that road work was ongoing. He also denied telling an insurance agent, who was investigating the collision, that the van in which he was riding was "all the way up against the curb when the cars hit head-on." Regarding his vision problems, Mr. Wright testified that it takes his eyes longer to adjust and recover when lights shine in his eyes. He conceded that the lights from an oncoming vehicle about to collide head-on with the van would have blinded him, but he thought that the lights could have been hitting the van without hitting him directly in his eyes.
The first Knoxville police officer dispatched to the accident scene was Jeff Damewood. An emergency medical team was at the scene when he arrived, and the roadway was blocked by two vehicles. He testified that the location of the van was near the fog line on the northbound side near the grass, and the truck sat perpendicular to the roadway in the intersection where Deercreek Park Road intersected Pleasant Ridge Road. Officer Damewood related that he first checked on the medical condition of all involved motorists. He then obtained driver's licenses and found out to which hospital the motorists would be transported.
Officer Damewood testified that he stayed near the defendant and his truck because he could smell "a strong odor of alcohol." After the defendant left the scene by ambulance, Officer Damewood then remained briefly to ensure that other officers who had arrived would have the damaged vehicles towed and would clean up the roadway. Officer Damewood then drove to the hospit
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