He told deputy he ‘freaked out’ after hitting something
A preliminary hearing is set for Oct. 20 for a Union Grove man accused of hitting and severely injuring a pedestrian with his car and leaving the scene on Oct. 8.
Joshua Hanson, 34, was charged Monday in Racine County Circuit Court with hit and run causing great bodily harm.
The victim was taken by helicopter to a Milwaukee area hospital from St. Catherine’s Hospital in Racine after suffering fractures to her elbow and ribs and a ruptured eye globe, which had caused a loss of vision, according to the criminal complaint.
Racine County Sheriff’s Deputies were dispatched about 6:24 p.m. to the accident scene on Highway KR west Highway 45 in the Town of Yorkville for a report of a vehicle vs. pedestrian crash. The offending vehicle had left the scene, according to the complaint.
While the woman was being treated by medical personnel a deputy spoke with a person who assisted the victim until emergency responders arrived. She told the deputy the victim had said she was struck by a “silver van,” the complaint states.
While investigating the crash scene the deputy found a silver side-view mirror not far from where the victim had landed. Additional investigation of the labeling on the mirror indicated it was for a Ford Escape or Mercury Mariner, according to the complaint.
The deputy also noted that the pavement was wet and there were no skid marks that would indicate an attempt to stop or swerve to avoid colliding with the victim, according to the complaint.
Investigators then went to the nearby Hickory Haven mobile home park to look for a vehicle that matched the description of the suspect’s SUV. While there one of the deputies found a 2010 silver Ford Escape with a missing mirror and damage to the passenger side fender parked at one of the residences, the complaint states.
At the home deputies encountered Hanson and his mother. Hanson admitted driving the vehicle that evening to get pizza and said he thought he “hit somebody in the arm or something” as he crested a hill in the rain, according to the complaint.
Hanson – whose hands were visibly shaking, according to the complaint – allegedly told deputies that “…I freaked the f— out and came here and, yeah, it took the mirror off.”
He also allegedly told deputies that he drank two hard lemonades and took a Percocet tablet after the collision. He was arrested and taken to an area hospital for an evidentiary blood draw.
Hanson made his initial appearance in court Monday during which he was ordered not to drive and bond was set at $500.
For more court news see the Sept. 15 editions of the Westine Report and Waterford Post.
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