Toxicology reports show a 21-year-old Little Rock woman had alcohol in her system during a fatal head-on crash with an ambulance that injured two paramedics in January.
The state Alcoholic Beverage Control agency released its final report last week detailing how Brianna Carter was drinking at a Little Rock bar until about 5 a.m. before the fatal Jan. 6 crash along Interstate 40 near Maumelle.
Two emergency medical responders were injured, and Carter died at the scene after suffering fatal injuries, authorities said.
Investigators reviewed video footage of Carter drinking three to four beers and a shot of whiskey at a bar before leaving about 4:50 a.m.
A state Crime Laboratory report showed the woman's ethanol content levels were 0.164. The tests indicate Carter had consumed alcohol, but it's unclear how those results translate to her blood-alcohol content level. A forensic toxicologist with the lab said she couldn't comment beyond the results.
State officials said it's difficult to show if the bar where she drank is liable for the wreck.
"Many events occurred prior to Ms. Carter entering the Bar, and it is unknown what events may have occurred after her exiting the Bar that could have led to the fatal accident," a state agent wrote in the report.
An Arkansas State Police report said Carter at some point entered I-40 the wrong way before hitting the ambulance about 5:15 a.m.
Paul Sanchez, a 22-year-old medic whose foot was injured in the wreck, described in an interview last month seeing headlights before the impact that morning.
The crash broke Sanchez's femur in two places, as well as another two places in his heel, which will require months of physical therapy.
His partner, Darius Williams, was released from the hospital with minor injuries on the same day as the crash.
State Desk on 03/04/2019