A Hartsville man is facing three counts of felony driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license following a vehicle crash early Saturday that left two people dead, one of them a Hartsville High School student, and another person seriously injured.
Dennis Carl Smith, 35, was in custody at the Darlington County Detention Center Tuesday awaiting a bond hearing. He was charged with two counts of felony DUI resulting in death and one count of felony DUI resulting in great bodily injury, according to Trooper Sonny Collins of the S.C. Highway Patrol. He was also charged with DUS, a misdemeanor.
Smith was convicted of DUI in relation to a traffic stop in June 1998 in Chesterfield County, according to a State Law Enforcement Division background check. He paid a $437 fine. In addition, in 2006, Smith was convicted of possession of marijuana in
Hartsville and fined $565.
If the case proceeds to a jury trial, Fourth Circuit Solicitor Will Rogers said it will be up to a judge whether a jury is allowed to learn about any priors involving Smith. Often, prior convictions are deemed too prejudicial and don't become factors unless there's a sentencing stage. The felony DUI case is still under review and his office will pursue appropriate action, he said.
"It's a very serious charge; any time someone dies as a result of something like that it's terrible," Rogers said.
The Saturday crash occurred at about 12:41 a.m. Saturday at the intersection of South Fifth Street and the U.S. 15 Bypass about two miles south of Hartsville, according to Cpl. Paul Brouthers of the S.C. Highway Patrol.
Darlington County Coroner Todd Hardee said the crash claimed the lives of Antonio Danquinton McFadden, 19, and his cousin, Artivas Gilbert Brown, 17. Brown was a rising senior at Hartsville High School, according to the Darlington County School District.
McFadden died at the scene. Brown died Sunday at Palmetto Richland Memorial Hospital in Columbia, according to Hardee.
According to the Highway Patrol, a Mazda Four-door driven by the victims’ grandmother was stopped at a traffic light on the U.S. 15 Bypass when a Chevy Blazer traveling south on the bypass slammed into the rear of the car.
Another person in the Mazda was seriously injured and taken to an area hospital. One other passenger escaped serious injury.
The driver of the Blazer initially refused transport to a hospital but later asked to be taken to an area medical center for treatment of chest pain, Brouthers said. The Highway Patrol’s MAIT Team (Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team) is investigating the crash, Collins said.
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