By Sarah Richardson
On Friday, Apr. 3, at approximately 10 p.m., members of the Greenbrier County Sheriff’s Office responded to a traffic accident on Ronceverte Hill. The investigation revealed that a Dodge pickup truck being operated by E. Lavoyd Morgan Jr., 53, of Ronceverte, was northbound on U.S. Route 219 when his vehicle exited the roadway and went over the guardrail on the east side of the road. A passenger in the vehicle, identified as Amelia Braden (Winsby) of Kansas City, Kansas, was ejected from the pickup truck and succumbed to injuries sustained as a result of the accident.
According to the criminal complaint, C.R. Smith of the Greenbrier Valley Sheriff’s Office was driving north on U.S. 219 and drove over a piece of plastic in the roadway. He stopped to remove the debris, and while doing so he noticed a truck over the hill that had wrecked. Smith then made contact with Morgan, who stated that “he was ok, but need to find a female that was with him.” Smith asked Morgan if he was drunk, to which he said yes.
The complaint notes that Winsby was located deceased approximately 100 yards from the vehicle.
More officers arrived on scene and noted they “could smell a strong presence of an alcoholic beverage coming from (Morgan’s) breath, he had bloodshot eyes, slurred speech, and had trouble keeping his balance while standing and walking.”
Morgan repeatedly refused to take any type of BAC test, and officers had to gain a search warrant to take Morgan to Greenbrier Valley Medical Center for a blood test.
Morgan was arrested by Sergeant T.C. Webber, of the Greenbrier County Sheriff’s Office, and charged with DUI causing death. He was incarcerated in the Southern Regional Jail prior to being released on bond.
Lieutenant G.R. Workman of the Greenbrier County Sheriff’s Office is the investigating officer.
