Illinois basketball player Jamar Smith has been charged with driving under the influence and leaving the scene of an accident, both felonies, a week after crashing his car and seriously injuring teammate Brian Carlwell. Smith had a blood-alcohol level of .176 the night of Feb. 12. Smith drove his badly damaged car home and, stunningly, went into his apartment, leaving his unconscious teammate stuck in the car. Neighbors called 911; Smith -- contrary to a university spokesman's previous claims -- did not.
Illinois has already announced that Smith will miss the rest of the season, and Carlwell will likely miss the rest of the season despite the swift recovery he has made from the concussion he suffered in the crash.
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Many sites have a condensed version of the release.The Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette and the Decatur Herald & Review have a lot more information.
Decatur Herald & Review
www.herald-review.com
2/20/2007
Charges filed against Jamar Smith
— Mark Tupper @ 2:08 pm
Here is the news release from Champaign County State’s Attorney Julia Rietz in connection with additional charges filed Tuesday against Jamar Smith:
The Champaign County State’s Attorney’s Office filed charges against Jamar Smith today following the University of Illinois Police Department’s completion of the investigation of the February 12, 2007, traffic crash. Smith is charged with one count of Aggravated Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol, a class 4 felony, in that he drove a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and was involved in a motor vehicle accident that resulted in great bodily harm to Brian Carlwell, and with one count of Leaving the Scene of a Personal Injury Accident, a class 3 felony, in that he was involved in a motor vehicle accident which resulted in personal injury and failed to stop his vehicle and remain at the scene and further failed to report the accident to authorities within 30 minutes after the accident as required.
The U of I police department investigation revealed that prior to the crash on South First Street, Smith and Carlwell had been drinking tequila and beer at an apartment at College Fields Apartments on South First Street, Champaign, with others. Smith and Carlwell left in Smith’s vehicle shortly after 11:00 p.m. Smith was driving south on South First Street, lost control of his vehicle, and hit a tree on the passenger side of the vehicle. He was able to drive the vehicle back to College Fields Apartments. Two witnesses saw the damaged vehicle pull into the parking lot, and saw a tall man exit the vehicle and enter the apartment building. They also saw an unconscious passenger in the vehicle. They then saw the tall man and a second man return, approach the car, and then leave and go back into the building. The witnesses called 911 at 11:40 p.m. No other 911 calls were made. Sheriff’s deputies and U of I police arrived, and found Brian Carlwell unconscious in the car. He was removed from the vehicle and taken to Carle Hospital.
Further investigation revealed that Smith had gone to his apartment in the College Fields complex. A number of other basketball team members were in the apartment. It appears that Smith was distraught, as he believed Carlwell had died in the crash. Based on the investigation, there is no evidence that Smith had anything alcoholic to drink following the crash. At approximately 1:00 a.m., witnesses and U of I police officers located Smith and transported him to Carle Hospital, where he was treated and released. Smith submitted to blood testing. Illinois State Police lab preliminary laboratory analysis indicates that Smith’s blood alcohol content was .176