A man whose passenger was permanently disabled when he crashed into a fountain in front of Texarkana's downtown federal building pleaded guilty Monday to intoxication assault in Bowie County.
Harvey Lynn Terry, 54, appeared before 202nd District Judge John Tidwell with Chief Public Defender Rick Shumaker. Terry had a blood alcohol level of .239, well above the legal limit of .08, when his teal Nissan pickup careened into the fountain July 26, 2016, shortly before 1 a.m., according to a probable-cause affidavit used to create the following account.
Terry's passenger, Donnie Joe Smith, 62 at the time of the crash, suffered a traumatic brain injury, bleeding in his brain and respiratory failure as a result of the crash but survived.
Officers responding to the crash immediately noticed the odor of alcohol coming from Terry. Both he and Smith were taken to CHRISTUS St. Michael Health System for treatment. After the crash, Terry was interviewed by Texarkana, Texas, police officer Darren Jones. Jones allegedly noticed signs of intoxication in Terry's eyes and could smell alcohol coming from Terry's breath as he spoke.
"I asked Terry to say the alphabet all the way through. Terry attempted to say the alphabet twice but was unable to finish both times," the affidavit states. "When I asked Terry for a third time he refused."
When asked to rate his intoxication on a scale of one to 10, with "10 being the highest level of intoxication he could imagine for himself," Terry allegedly gave himself an eight.
"When I asked Terry for a second time what he had been doing on this date he informed me, 'drinking and driving,'" the affidavit states.
Terry allegedly told Jones that he and Smith consumed "a few 12 packs of beer" while at the International Room, also known as the Double R bar, on State Line Avenue.
"Terry stated that he was unsure when or why he left the bar but stated he knew he was heading home when he crashed," the affidavit states.
Results from blood samples collected from Terry the day of the crash were received from the Texas Department of Public Safety in September. According to the affidavit, Smith was still in the hospital two months following the wreck. Terry has a long history of arrests for drunken driving and boating while intoxicated.
A lawsuit accusing the International Room of overserving Terry and Smith was filed by his co-guardians last year in Miller County circuit court. The suit alleges the men were allowed to leave the bar and drive in a state of visible intoxication.
The International Room filed a response in December denying any wrongdoing. The bar denies Terry was obviously intoxicated when he was served alcohol there and alleges he is to blame for the crash.
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