A Brooklyn Park man was allegedly under the influence of alcohol and drugs when he crashed into an 11-year-old girl who had just gotten off a school bus.
Gregory J. Garth, 60, was charged last month in Hennepin County District Court with two counts of criminal vehicular operation while under the influence of alcohol and one count of criminal vehicular operation while under the influence of drugs.
According to the criminal complaint, Garth struck the girl about 4:50 p.m. on May 3 near the intersection of Penn Avenue N. and 23rd Avenue N. in Minneapolis.
Several witnesses told police that the girl got off the bus and was walking across Penn Avenue when a Saturn passed the bus and struck her.
The girl was thrown against the car's windshield, hurled into the air and landed in the street. She suffered a skull fracture, bleeding outside the surface of her brain and a broken leg, among several other injuries.
She underwent emergency surgery to remove two parts of her skull to relieve pressure caused by the swelling of her brain. A third surgery was later required because of ongoing swelling.
Garth stopped at the scene. Officers who spoke with Garth smelled alcohol on his breath.
A preliminary breath test showed a blood alcohol level of .07. The legal limit to drive is .08. Toxicology results showed that he had alcohol, the chemical compound found in marijuana and cocaine in his blood.
