MOORESVILLE — The driver accused of hitting a 15-year-old Mooresville High School student Tuesday as she was heading to her bus was still drunk from the day before at the time of the collision, a court document alleges.
Michael W. Simpson, 35, made that admission to police after they found suspected drug paraphernalia in his vehicle and on his person, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The document also says the impact vaulted the girl into the air before Simpson ran her over, causing her a possible broken femur and pelvis.
First responders found the girl injured when they arrived about 6:50 a.m. to the intersection of North Indiana Street and East County Line Road.
At the time, the girl was "screaming and incoherent" and wasn't able to answer any questions, according to the affidavit.
An investigation found a school bus had its caution lights activated but not its stop arm when Simpson struck the girl. She was crossing the street to enter the bus.
Simpson told police he was traveling at about 20 mph and didn't see the girl until she "darted out in front of him," according to the affidavit.
An officer then noticed Simpson had a glass pipe sticking out from his front right pocket, at which point he said he hadn't smoked any marijuana or consumed alcohol that morning.
Police later found another broken pipe in his vehicle.
Simpson consented to a blood draw, which yielded a result of .125 BAC, over the legal limit of .08. As Simpson was being taken for additional testing, an officer smelled marijuana on him.
Simpson failed all but one portion of sobriety testing, according to the affidavit.
He was charged Wednesday with the following:
- Causing serious bodily injury when operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated
- Operating a vehicle while intoxicated endangering a person\
- Operating a vehicle while intoxicated
- Possession of paraphernalia
Simpson was booked Tuesday at the Morgan County Jail. He was released the same evening on $5,205 bond — $1,205 cash and $4,000 surety, according to jail records.
As of Wednesday, an initial court date hadn't been scheduled for Simpson.
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