A Silver Lake man drove through a stop sign while drunk and crashed into another vehicle in rural McLeod County, breaking one victim’s arm and sending both occupants to a hospital, according to charges.
Stuart Ray Walsh, 19, faces four counts of criminal vehicular operation, two alleging substantial bodily harm and two alleging bodily harm, split between driving under the influence of alcohol and gross negligence, along with fourth-degree DWI, open bottle and underage drinking and driving.
According to the complaint, a deputy was dispatched at about 9:51 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 25, to the intersection of Vale Avenue and 150th Street in Lynn Township for a two-vehicle crash. Officers found significant damage to both vehicles and spoke with the victims, who reported chest pain, lightheadedness and numbness in the left arm. One victim’s left arm was broken in the crash.
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One victim told deputies that the other vehicle, driven by Walsh, did not stop and came right through the intersection. The victims had been traveling east on 150th Street, while Walsh was heading south on Vale Avenue and would have faced a stop sign at the intersection, according to the complaint.
Deputies found a nearly empty bottle of Cherry Limeade SVEDKA vodka on the front passenger floor of Walsh’s vehicle, along with a bottle of isopropyl alcohol that had a puncture and some liquid missing. Officers noted Walsh had vomit on his neck and shirt, red eyes, slow speech, trouble balancing and a faint odor of an alcoholic beverage. Walsh admitted he was the driver and told deputies, “just bring me to jail.”
A witness at the scene reported seeing Walsh drive through the stop sign and described him as appearing drunk. The witness said Walsh was walking away after the crash and another witness told him to stay.
Walsh provided a preliminary breath test that showed a blood alcohol concentration of .225. He was under 21 at the time of the crash. Deputies obtained a warrant for a blood sample, which was collected at about 12:05 p.m. but had not yet been analyzed as of the complaint’s filing. Both victims were transported to a hospital for treatment.
The complaint states that Walsh remained in detox at the time charges were filed. A warrant was requested due to concerns about his response to a summons and the risk of imminent harm.
