Published: September 22, 2009 10:56 pm      

Alleged drunken driver hits front porch

Police say man tested four times the legal limit

Kokomo police suspect a local motorist was drunk when the man crashed his pickup truck into the front of a northside home late Monday night.

Police say Michael Strange, 60, 1300 block of North Wabash Avenue, tested at nearly four times the legal limit after he crashed at the southwest corner of North Street and Courtland Avenue.

According to the KPD, Strange was entrapped in the silver 2000 Chevy Silverado and was bleeding from striking the windshield.

Those injuries were enough to convince police to take Strange to St. Joseph Hospital rather than the Howard County jail. At the hospital, Strange registered a .29 percent BAC, police said. The legal limit for Indiana drivers is .08 percent.

A witness in the 1300 block of North Courtland told police Strange was involved in another crash shortly before ending up on the front porch of 1241 N. Courtland.

The witness told police that after seeing the first crash, he yelled after Strange to stop. At that point, the witness said, Strange appeared to hit the accelerator.

The truck became airborne after hitting the curb and ended up wedged on the home’s front porch, police said.

“The home of the victim sustained structural damage to the front of the home and possibly the entire foundation of the house,” the police accident report states.

No residents of the home were injured, and police said Strange appeared to have only minor bleeding from the face.

Police said they intend to charge Strange with misdemeanor operating a vehicle while intoxicated and leaving the scene of a property-damage accident.

• Scott Smith is a Kokomo Tribune staff writer. He may be reached at (765) 454-8569 or via e-mail at scott.smith@kokomotribune.com