Pines man charged months after DUI crash that seriously injured two, police say
A Pembroke Pines man is behind bars months after allegedly driving drunk and causing a crash that landed him and another driver in a hospital with serious injuries, authorities say.
Officers responded to the 8300 block of Pembroke Road on Jan. 23 for a two-vehicle crash involving Ryan Erick James, 28, and an unidentified driver and victim, according to James’ arrest report.
Investigators say James, who was driving a blue Hyundai Sonata Sport, was speeding westbound on Pembroke Road around 7:45 p.m. when he hit a raised curb, lost control of the car and spun out, striking a red Honda Civic on its passenger side.
The red sedan, which police say was headed north on the access road behind a nearby Walmart, was stopped at a center median and attempting to make a left turn to head west on the four-lane highway when it was sideswiped by James.
The crash caused James’ Hyundai to roll several times before landing upside down.
Officers noted that James, who was in and out of consciousness when pulled out of his vehicle, was not wearing a seatbelt. Airbags were deployed in both cars and both drivers were rushed to Memorial Regional Hospital with serious injuries, the report says.
James sustained a rib and lower back fracture while the Civic’s driver was left with a multiple area brain bleed, swelling and a facial fracture near the right eye, officials say.
Nearly a month later, toxicology reports showed James had blood-alcohol levels of 0.141 percent and 0.185 percent, nearly double Florida’s legal limit, authorities said.
His Hyundai’s crash sensors also revealed he was driving 93 mph in a 45-mph zone five seconds before the collision, according to investigators.
Police arrested James on Sunday, June 14, and booked him into Broward Main Jail, where records show he was being held on a $44,300 bond. Police also said James had previously been investigated in connection with a hit-and-run incident in Miramar and Pembroke Pines.
The 28-year-old faces two felony charges for driving under the influence and causing serious bodily injury to another, four misdemeanors for driving under the influence and causing damage to property or person, and two misdemeanors for unattended vehicle at the scene of an accident without leaving identification.
