A 51-year-old Louisville man is facing a felony charge after police say his SUV plowed into the back of a parked Kentucky State Police cruiser late Monday night in an active highway work zone along Interstate 264, narrowly missing two roadwork trucks and eight crew members working nearby. Jose M. Salazar Agreda was headed westbound near the Exit 19 ramp around 10:17 p.m. when his vehicle struck the trooper's stationary patrol car, according to arrest records.
The trooper had parked at the roadwork scene with emergency lights activated while a striping crew performed maintenance work in the area, according to police reports cited by WAVE News. No injuries were reported in the crash, despite Salazar Agreda's vehicle narrowly missing two roadwork trucks.
Responding officers reported that Salazar Agreda showed signs of impairment once he was out of the vehicle, and they had to help him exit it. He was unable to safely complete field sobriety tests, police reported, and a Spanish-translating officer was called to the scene to assist with that process.
Breath Test Doubled the Legal Limit
A breathalyzer administered at Louisville Metro Corrections registered a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.204%, more than double Kentucky's legal limit of 0.08%. That figure also clears the state's 0.15% threshold for an aggravated DUI, a distinction that carries real consequences in court.
Under Kentucky Revised Statutes 189A.010, a BAC of 0.15% or higher counts as an aggravating circumstance that doubles the mandatory minimum jail sentence for a DUI conviction, according to Suhre & Associates. The state lowered that aggravator threshold from 0.17% to 0.15% back in 2010, meaning Salazar Agreda's reading falls well inside the range that triggers harsher penalties.
Felony Wanton Endangerment Charge Looms Largest
Salazar Agreda was arrested and booked into Louisville Metro Corrections facing a lengthy list of charges, including first-degree wanton endangerment of a police officer, reckless driving, failing to yield in a road work zone, operating a vehicle without a license, and operating a motor vehicle under the influence with aggravated circumstances.
The wanton endangerment charge is the most serious of the bunch. Kentucky Revised Statutes 508.060 defines first-degree wanton endangerment as a Class D felony punishable by up to five years in prison for conduct that creates a substantial danger of death or serious injury under circumstances showing extreme indifference to human life, according to the Farra Law Firm. Notably, the charge does not require that anyone actually be hurt — only that the conduct created a severe risk, which prosecutors could argue applies here given how close Salazar Agreda's vehicle came to both the trooper and the striping crew.
A Crash That Fits a Statewide Pattern
The collision comes amid heightened enforcement of Kentucky's Move Over Law, which requires drivers approaching stationary emergency or roadside vehicles with flashing lights to slow down or change lanes. Violations can bring fines up to $500 and up to 30 days in jail, and the law was expanded in July 2024 to cover any disabled roadside vehicle displaying hazard flashers, according to Ecton & Shannon PLLC.
The crash highlights the importance of slowing down and moving over around roadside emergency lights on major interstate corridors. Separately, Kentucky law addresses drivers' obligations when approaching emergency vehicles displaying warning lights; traffic-offense categories are discussed by the Busald Funk Zevely PSC law firm.
Work zone crashes like this one aren't unusual in their mechanics. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data shows that rear-end collisions occur at notably higher rates in fatal work zone crashes compared to non-work zone crashes nationwide, while the circumstances of individual crashes vary.
What Happens Next in Court
Salazar Agreda is scheduled to appear in Jefferson District Court. People arrested for DUI may be booked at local facilities such as Louisville Metro Corrections. The case will proceed through the courts.
The crash adds to a string of recent Kentucky roadway cases that have drawn scrutiny to impaired and reckless driving. Kentucky continues to monitor roadway safety, including alcohol impairment and emergency vehicle crashes.
