Pine Lawn man charged with fatal DWI crash
A St. Louis County Circuit Court judge signed an arrest warrant this week for a Pine Lawn accused of causing a drunk driving crash that killed one person and injured two others.
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – A St. Louis County Circuit Court judge signed an arrest warrant this week for a Pine Lawn accused of causing a drunk driving crash that killed one person and injured two others.
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s probable cause statement, the crash happened on Oct. 27 at the St. Charles Rock Road ramp to Interstate 70 in Bridgeton.
Police said Jarrell Terrell (age not provided) was driving a 2016 Toyota Highlander on Paul Meyer Avenue. Terrell nearly struck a police vehicle when merging from Paul Meyer onto St. Charles Rock Road.
The officer switched on his emergency lights and attempted to pull Terrell over, but he accelerated and attempted to evade police.
Terrell tried taking the eastbound I-70 on-ramp while speeding and flipped the Highlander in the process, police said.
Terrell got out of the Highlander, jumped a nearby chain link fence, and attempted to flee on foot into a wooded area. The pursuing officer eventually located and arrested Terrell.
There were three other people in the Highlander at the time of the crash: two in the backseat and one person in the front passenger seat. One victim in the backseat suffered a broken left foot while the other suffered minor injuries. The person in the passenger seat, Shemar White, was ejected through the sunroof and died at the scene.
Police said Terrell initially refused to provide a blood sample. However, law enforcement got a search warrant to test his blood more than five hours after the crash, which revealed a BAC of .115.
Terrell allegedly told investigators he’d been drinking tequila and said he didn’t stop because he was scared of police. The surviving passengers identified Terrell as the driver.
Investigators later confirmed the Highlander has been stolen and that it had plates from a different vehicle on it.
The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Terrell with one count of aggravated fleeing a stop or detention resulting in death, two counts of aggravated fleeing a stop or detention causing physical injury, one count of DWI – death of another, one count of DWI – serious physical injury, one count of DWI – physical injury, and one count of leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death.
The arrest warrant comes with a $500,000 cash-only bond.
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