FISHERS, Ind. – A 20-year-old driver was drunk and going nearly 110 mph when his car crashed into an SUV in February, leading to the death of another driver, police say.
Jayden Kirk, 20, faces felony counts of causing death when operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol level above .08 and causing death when operating a vehicle with a Scheduled I or Scheduled II controlled substance or its metabolite in the blood.
He also faces misdemeanor counts of operating a vehicle with an alcohol concentration equivalent to .15, operating a vehicle with a Schedule I or Schedule II controlled substance or its metabolite in the blood, and reckless driving.
The crash happened around midnight on Feb. 9, near the intersection of East 96th Street and the I-69 southbound exit ramp to 96th Street. It closed the road for several hours, preventing traffic from entering 96th Street from I-69 southbound.
The crash involved Kirk’s 2014 Ford Mustang and a 2009 GMC Yukon. According to court documents, Kirk was going nearly 110 mph when his car slammed into the Yukon. The driver of the SUV, Christopher Brown, 40, of Indianapolis, later died from his injuries at an area hospital.
A witness reported that Kirk’s Mustang passed him on the right side on 96th Street at a high rate of speed before the crash. The Mustang, driven by Kirk, proceeded to speed through an intersection despite having a red light.
The Mustang then hit the Yukon; the witness reported “seeing sparks” upon impact.
A separate witness who was trailing Brown’s SUV said the Yukon had a green turn light; the Mustang failed to stop at the red light and crashed into the passenger side of the Yukon.
When investigators arrived at the scene, Kirk was still in the Mustang, the speedometer frozen at 110 mph. The car had significant damage to the front end and the airbag had been deployed. The passenger side tires rested in the grass south of the sidewalk.
The Yukon was lying on the driver’s side; it had “heavy damage” to the passenger’s side. Investigators believe the impact sent the SUV airborne, causing it to roll at least once. There were tire and gouge marks on the road and sidewalk.
Data captured from the Mustang showed Kirk was going 109.4 mph before impact. At no point did Kirk try to hit the brakes, the data indicated.
A blood draw showed Kirk had a blood alcohol level of .163, more than twice the state’s legal limit. He is under the state’s drinking age of 21. He also had THC in his system, according to court documents.
Brown died from multiple blunt force trauma; the autopsy showed he suffered numerous injuries.
“Drugs, alcohol, reckless driving, speed and disregarding an automatic signal are factors in this vehicle crash,” the investigator wrote in the probable cause affidavit.
Jail records show Kirk was booked into the Hamilton County Jail on Thursday morning.