Thanksgiving crash leads to drug charges

A Solsberry man was in court last week facing drug charges as a result of falling asleep behind the wheel, running off the road, crashing his vehicle then being found in possession of a quantity of methamphetamine.

Travis Adam White

Travis Adam White, 36, Solsberry, has been charged with:

• Possession of methamphetamine in an amount between 10 and 28 grams, a Level 4 felony,

• Unlawful possession of a syringe, a Level 6 felony,

• Possession of marijuana, a Class B misdemeanor, and

• Possession of paraphernalia, a Class C misdemeanor.

He was in Greene Circuit Court last Wednesday after landing in jail on Thanksgiving Day, booked in by Sgt. Bobby Pierce of the Greene County Sheriff’s Department.

During White’s initial hearing, his bond was set at $15,000 surety with ten percent cash allowed and he has since been released from jail after posting $1,500 cash.

Sgt. Pierce responded to the crash after a 911 caller said a vehicle was overturned in a ditch in front of her house.

When Pierce arrived on the scene, a passerby who was a medic told the deputy he’d come upon the crash scene and stopped to see if anyone needed help. He said White, the driver, told him he had dozed off and ran off the road. The medic also said he had smelled the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle. Pierce said he too could smell the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle.

The Greene County Ambulance Service also responded but White refused medical treatment.

White allegedly said he’d just worked over 18 hours and was on his way home when he fell asleep while driving and ran off the road.

Pierce said he could see what appeared to be a container in White’s pocket and he asked if he could see it. When White showed it to him, Pierce said it contained a white crystal-like substance that later field-tested as methamphetamine.

White allegedly admitted the methamphetamine belonged to him and that he’d purchased it in Indianapolis. He said he does not sell his meth but had it for personal use because he works long hours per week and he uses it to stay awake.

Pierce reported that between his person and the vehicle, White was found in possession of methamphetamine in an amount between 19 and 20 grams, marijuana, various items of paraphernalia and syringes containing a white residue that also field-tested positive for methamphetamine.