A 63-year-old Weidman man is behind bars after police say he nearly struck a Michigan State Police trooper who was fueling her patrol cruiser before crashing his pickup truck into the back of a gas station convenience store early Monday morning. The crash happened around 1:55 a.m. at the EZ Mart in Weidman, damaging several food and beverage display stands and coolers inside the building. No injuries were reported.
According to CBS News Detroit, a trooper at the scene saw the red pickup driving erratically through the gas station parking lot before the driver nearly struck two diesel fuel pumps. Police said the truck then nearly hit the trooper and her marked cruiser as she was fueling it, before the vehicle came to rest after striking several coolers at the back of the building. The trooper was assigned to the Michigan State Police Mt. Pleasant Post, known as Post 63, which oversees state police operations across Isabella County, according to WZZM 13.
Police arrested the driver on suspicion of impaired driving and lodged him in the Isabella County Jail, the outlet reported. The near-miss adds to a pattern of roadside danger for troopers; Michigan State Police reported that seven MSP patrol vehicles were struck in roadside collisions during a single month in January 2025, according to a report shared by 9&10 News.
What Michigan Law Says About Parking Lot DUIs
Even though the crash happened on private commercial property rather than a public road, Michigan's impaired driving laws still apply. Under Section 257.625 of the Michigan Vehicle Code, the state's Operating While Intoxicated and Operating While Visibly Impaired statutes cover parking lots and other areas open to the public or accessible to motor vehicles, according to the Michigan Legal Center.
A first-offense misdemeanor OWI conviction in Michigan can carry up to 93 days in jail, fines up to $500 plus court costs, up to 360 hours of community service, six points on a driving record, and license suspension, per the state's outlined penalties. If blood-alcohol testing shows a bodily alcohol content of 0.17 or higher, Michigan's Superdrunk provision kicks in, raising the maximum jail term to 180 days and requiring alcohol treatment along with an ignition interlock device. It remains unclear whether formal charges have been filed by the Isabella County Prosecutor's Office or what the driver's blood alcohol content reading was.
A Familiar Hazard for Convenience Stores
Vehicle-into-building collisions are far from rare at gas stations and convenience stores. Nationally, such crashes happen more than 100 times a day across the country, with gas stations and convenience stores accounting for roughly 20 of those daily incidents, according to data from the Storefront Safety Council cited by ASIS International.
Driving under the influence accounts for about 15% of all storefront vehicle collisions, while drivers 60 and older are involved in 38% of them, per Storefront Safety Council statistics. Safety experts have pointed to head-in parking configurations facing glass storefronts as an elevated risk factor, recommending crash-rated steel or concrete bollards that typically cost about $1,000 per parking space, according to C-Store Dive. The estimated financial damage to the EZ Mart building has not yet been disclosed.
Police Urge Drivers to Plan Ahead
Michigan State Police said impaired driving can turn a routine trip into a potentially life-threatening situation in seconds. The agency advised people who have been drinking not to drive, and instead to find a sober ride, call someone they trust, or make other arrangements.
Hoodline has previously reported on serious crashes in the area, including two people airlifted after an Old Mission Road crash in Isabella County in October 2024. Monday's incident in Weidman resulted in no reported injuries, but it once again put a spotlight on the risks convenience stores and roadside officers face from impaired or erratic drivers.
