KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Kansas City, Missouri, man had a blood-alcohol content more than three times the legal limit when he allegedly caused a deadly crash earlier this year on Interstate 470 near Interstate 49, prosecutors said.
Paul Dowdell, 39, was charged with driving while intoxicated in connection with the Jan. 5 crash, the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office said in a news release.
According to prosecutors, Dowdell crossed a lane divider and struck a tractor-trailer, which then went over a guardrail, re-entered the roadway and crashed into a concrete barrier. The driver of the tractor-trailer, identified as Daniel Shafer, died the next day from his injuries.
Medical records showed that Dowdell had a blood-alcohol concentration of .295, prosecutors said.
Dowdell went to the hospital after the crash and left against medical advice before an officer arrived, according to prosecutors. He was arrested after police pulled him over on Saturday for failing to remain stopped at a traffic signal.
Prosecutors requested a bond of $150,000.
