A fatal accident in Edgecombe County last month has led to North Carolina Alcohol Law Enforcement charging four people with death of Edward Direll Hill of Hobgood, North Carolina (NC). .
Twenty-year-old Edward Direll Hill of Hobgood was a passenger in a vehicle driven by Demetrius Bess Jr., 17, also of Hobgood.
Investigators with the State Highway Patrol say Bess was behind the wheel of a vehicle traveling on Fishing Creek Road in Edgecombe County March 7, when he ran off the right side of the road, overturned and struck a tree.
Edward Hill was killed in the accident. Bess was charged March 9, with felony death by motor vehicle and driving while impaired under a provisional license.
The automobile accident led to a complaint of alcohol being sold to underage persons at the Smart Stop, an ABC-licensed establishment in Scotland Neck. This lead to Alcohol Law Enforcement agent, Kelvin Dickens, to further investigation.
ALE alleges Eric Donte Lewis, 17, had purchased the beer from the convenience store and gave it to Timothy Whitehead, 18, who provided the alcohol to Bess. The beer they consumed had a concentration of 11 percent alcohol by volume, which is more than double the alcohol concentration of most standard beers.
ALE has announced the following:
• Taha Hamad Ali, of Aulander, was charged with selling malt beverages to a person less than 21 years of age.
• Eric Donte Lewis of Scotland Neck was charged with being less than 21 years of age and purchase of malt beverages, and giving malt beverages to a person who was less than 21 years of age.
• Whitehead, of Scotland Neck, was charged with being less than 21 years of age, possess malt beverages.
• Bess was charged with being less than 21 years of age, possess malt beverages.
Additionally, the North Carolina ABC Commission could impose penalties such as a revocation of Smart Stop’s ABC license, a suspension of their license or a monetary fine against the business. The North Carolina Highway Patrol handled the accident investigation and may seek further charges.
If you have been injured in a similar accident and need the help of a lawyer please contact our office. Our firm may be able to help you recover medical expenses and loss wages. Our injury law firm maintains a NE NC office in Elizabeth City, and our main law office is in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Four of our law firm’s injury lawyers are licensed to practice law in North Carolina, Virginia, and beyond. For over a decade we have been helping North Carolina residents, and those suffering injuries or wrongful death in NC.
Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm is based in Virginia, with offices in northeast NC and Virginia Beach (VA), practicing primarily in the southeastern U.S. and handles only injury law, including car, truck, railroad, and medical negligence cases and more. The firm’s website is: hsinjurylaw.com, the firm edits three injury law blogs: Virginia Beach Injuryboard & Norfolk Injuryboard, as well as the Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard and also hosts a video library covering many FAQ’s on personal injury subjects. The lawyers are licensed in VA, NC, WV, DC, SC, and KY.
Comments for this article are closed.