Police say the driver involved in an early Sunday morning wreck that killed three people could face intoxicated manslaughter charges. Right now 26-year-old Brian Cody Hawthorne is hospitalized in stable condition.
According to the police report he lost control of his pickup in the 500 block of University Avenue, flipped it, and struck 68-year-old Cortland Whitmore, who was riding his bike. Whitmore was pronounced dead at the scene.
Hawthorne's two passengers, 23-year-old Arturo Almaguer and 27-year-old Kendrick Johnson, were also killed. They worked at Best Buy; Tyler Pritchard worked with them.
"I saw the wreck last night on University. I knew something happened," Pritchard said. He said he wasn't aware at the time that he knew the victims.
"I just found out through a bunch of Facebook posts and an actual online thing that I actually knew a couple of the people that this happened to," Pritchard said.
Pritchard said he is shocked by the deaths of his two fellow workers.
"Everybody liked both of them. They were both real well liked guys. Kendrick, he always made people laugh. Arturo, he was just a real nice guy. I'll pray for their families, both of them. They're in a better place now," Pritchard said.
Investigators said alcohol may have been a factor but the cause of the crash has not been confirmed.
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