LAWRENCE COUNTY– A Bedford man has been arrested and charged with operating while intoxicated and operating while intoxicated endangerment following a single-vehicle rollover crash that occurred in December 2024.
Dustin Thomas, 36, was taken into custody on July 5 after investigators received toxicology results confirming his blood alcohol content was above the legal limit at the time of the crash, according to the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department.
Deputies responded to the crash on Dec. 21 near the intersection of Logan Donica Road and Logan Bottoms Road. Officers arrived to find Thomas being treated by emergency medical personnel and his vehicle overturned in a field.
Deputy D. Miller, who responded alongside Sgt. R. Compton and Deputy K. Carter reported the odor of alcohol on Thomas’s breath. Thomas allegedly admitted he had consumed a pint of vodka before leaving his home on the 200 block of Sadie Lane. He told deputies he was driving fast out of frustration when he lost control of the vehicle.
After being read his Miranda rights, Thomas again confirmed he had been drinking and consented to a blood draw. He was transported to IU Health Bedford Hospital, where his blood was collected and sent to the Indiana State Department of Toxicology for analysis.
On April 3, the department returned results showing Thomas had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.121, well over the state’s legal limit of 0.08.
Thomas now faces preliminary charges of operating while intoxicated and operating while intoxicated endangerment.
Those arrested are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
