JOSHUA WOLFSON Star-Tribune staff writer | Posted: Wednesday, February 28, 2007 12:00 am
An off-duty Casper police officer who died in a January car crash had a blood alcohol concentration of more than three times the legal limit, according to the Wyoming Highway Patrol.
Tests after the crash showed Kelly Pebbles had a blood alcohol concentration of .29, highway patrol Lt. Ted Bair said Tuesday. In Wyoming, a person is presumed too intoxicated to drive if his blood alcohol level is .08 or above.
A highway patrol report concluded that alcohol contributed to the crash, Bair said.
There was evidence of alcohol use in Pebbles' Ford F-250 truck, Bair said. He didn't specify what that evidence was.
"This certainly is a reminder of the consequence of somebody who makes a bad decision and drinks and drives," said Casper Police Chief Tom Pagel.
He urged people to use a designated driver and avoid drinking and driving.
"Drunk driving will continue to be a priority of the Casper Police Department," he said.
Pebbles died Jan. 31 after his truck struck a tree along Interstate 25, north of Wheatland. He was 39 and had been a Casper police officer since 2001.
Pebbles was driving south on the highway when he tried to pass a tractor-trailer just before 5 p.m. His pickup struck the front left side of the tractor-trailer and went off the road, according to the highway patrol. It overturned and struck a tree with such force that the passenger side frame rail broke, Bair said.
Pebbles wasn't wearing a seat belt and was ejected. He was pronounced dead an hour later at Platte County Memorial Hospital in Wheatland.
His truck was traveling an estimated 85 mph when it hit the tractor-trailer, according to the highway patrol.
The tractor-trailer's driver wasn't injured in the crash.
Born and raised in Wyoming, Pebbles worked as a paramedic for 14 years prior to joining the police department.
Reach Joshua Wolfson at (307) 266-0582 or at josh.wolfson@casperstartribune.net.