A man from California, Missouri, was arrested and posted bail on Tuesday after hitting a man in Sedalia with his truck and fleeing the scene, according to court documents.
20-year-old Ethan Daniels was charged on Tuesday with leaving the scene of an accident that caused serious injury and operating a vehicle carelessly and imprudently. He was arrested early Tuesday and was later released after posting a $10,000 bail, according to a spokesperson for the Moniteau County Jail.
An accident report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol states that 46-year-old Jeremy Maupin was struck by Daniels on Business 50 in California at 6:15 p.m. on Monday. Daniels was heading west on Business 50 in a 2008 Dodge 2500.
According to the online accident report, Daniels looked at his phone, veered off the right side of the road, then returned to the road and hit Maupin.
The report states that Maupin was taken to St. Mary's Regional Hospital in Jefferson City in an ambulance with serious injuries.
According to the statement of probable cause, officers requested assistance from the California Police Department to find possible video footage from nearby business security cameras. An officer had allegedly stated that Daniels owned a truck similar to the one seen in the video at the time of the accident. After further investigation, authorities determined that the Dodge seen in the video may have been kept in Clarksburg, the statement says.
The statement of probable cause indicates that the Dodge was found in California, Missouri, and the police saw a white truck with damage on the passenger side in the driveway of a residence. The officers knocked on the door, and a man answered, claiming that it was his girlfriend's house and allegedly stating that he knew nothing about the Dodge.
A woman came out and allegedly claimed that the Dodge belonged to her cousin, who had left it at her house because it was damaged and then used his truck to drive, the statement says.
The police arrived at Daniels' residence. His girlfriend answered the door, and the officer asked Daniels to come out, according to the statement. The officer interviewed Daniels in his patrol car, where Daniels allegedly said that he didn't see anything, only heard a noise and felt an impact.
Finally, Daniels told the officer that he looked down at his phone "between two and four seconds" and saw a yellow flash when he looked up, felt an impact, and heard a noise, according to the statement of probable cause.
Originally posted at Abogados de Choques
