A serious crash between a black SUV and a motorcycle at the intersection of North First Avenue and Uhlhorn Street left the motorcycle rider with a severe leg injury Tuesday evening, and the SUV driver now faces preliminary charges including operating while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury. Emergency personnel transported the injured rider to a local hospital for treatment after the crash, which happened around 8:20 p.m.
According to the Evansville Police Department, officers were dispatched to the scene after multiple 911 callers reported a serious injury crash between a black SUV and a motorcycle. The driver of the SUV, identified as 38-year-old Justin M. Walker, showed signs of impairment and submitted to standard field sobriety testing as well as portable breath testing, both of which indicated he was under the influence, police said. Walker reportedly admitted to drinking before the crash. Local outlet WSON Radio corroborated the dispatch timing, reporting that officers responded to the North First Avenue and Uhlhorn Street intersection at 8:20 p.m. on August 11 following the 911 calls.
Preliminary Charges Span Felony and Misdemeanor Counts
Walker was preliminarily charged with operating while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury, operating a vehicle while intoxicated-endangerment, and operating without ever having obtained a license, per the police department's news release. Under Indiana Code § 9-30-5-4, operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury is a Level 5 felony carrying a statutory penalty range of one to six years in prison and fines up to $10,000, according to Justia Law. The endangerment count, meanwhile, falls under Indiana Code § 9-30-5-2, which elevates OWI from a Class C misdemeanor to a Class A misdemeanor when the driving is shown to have endangered a person, punishable by up to one year in county jail and fines up to $5,000, per the same legal source.
The charge of operating without ever having obtained a license is defined under Indiana Code § 9-24-18-1 as a Class C misdemeanor punishable by up to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine, though the offense can be elevated to a Class A misdemeanor if the person has a prior conviction under the statute, according to FindLaw. All of the preliminary charges against Walker remain allegations at this stage and have not been proven in court.
Local Crash Data Show Motorcycle Wrecks Carry Outsized Risk
Vanderburgh County recorded 87 motorcycle-involved collisions in 2023 out of 5,612 total motor vehicle crashes countywide, according to traffic safety data compiled by the Indiana University Public Policy Institute for the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute. The same data show that 65 traffic collisions in the county involved alcohol-impaired driving in 2023, with 37 of those crashes occurring within the city of Evansville. Countywide, total traffic fatalities climbed from 9 in 2019 to 23 in 2023, the institute's figures show.
Statewide, alcohol-impaired driving in Indiana resulted in 8,873 total crashes in 2022, causing 220 deaths and 4,402 injuries, according to statistics published by the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute and reported by Foley & Murphy. The Evansville Police Department has partnered with the Vanderburgh County Sheriff's Office in the Evansville-Vanderburgh County Traffic Safety Partnership to run high-visibility enforcement and sobriety checkpoints funded by state and federal grants, including a checkpoint held less than a week before the crash, on August 6, according to a post from the Vanderburgh County Sheriff's Office on Facebook.
What Happens Next for Walker
Beyond the criminal case, Walker also faces potential administrative consequences. Under Indiana Code § 9-30-6-9, the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles can impose a driver's license suspension of up to 180 days upon a court finding of probable cause for an OWI offense, independent of how the criminal case is ultimately resolved, according to the Westport Police Department. It remains unclear whether prosecutors in Vanderburgh County will pursue enhanced charges or specific bail conditions tied to Walker's status as someone who has never held a license.
The condition of the injured motorcyclist has not been publicly updated beyond the initial report of a severe leg injury, and formal toxicological test results beyond the roadside portable breath test have not yet been released. The case remains under investigation, and all charges against Walker are preliminary allegations that have not been proven in court.
