Drunk driving charges dropped after firefighter’s death in Northeast
Shawn Giles, 53, of the Fuller House Co. volunteer, was killed in August while directing traffic at the scene of an accident. Although drunken driving charges were dropped, the motorist charged with manslaughter still faces other crimes.
Firefighters honor first responder killed in northeast on Sunday
Erie-area firefighters lined Route 89 northeast as Shawn Giles’ body was transported to Elkin’s Funeral Home following an autopsy.
Matthew Rink, Wochit
- In investigating the death of volunteer firefighter Shawn Giles, state police waited longer than the legally required two hours to draw blood from the motorist accused of a fatal accident
- Because of the timing, prosecutors have dropped the drunken driving charge against the driver, 42-year-old Dawann M. Simmons. He still faces vehicular manslaughter and other charges.
- Simmons’ trial was postponed until next month after the court-appointed attorney asked to leave the case because Simmons was not cooperating.
Citing problems with a blood draw, the Erie County District Attorney’s Office is dropping drunken driving charges against the driver alleged to have caused the crash that killed volunteer firefighter Shawn Giles in August while directing traffic at a North East Township accident scene.
The driver faces a number of other serious charges, including third-degree manslaughter and causing a fatal accident while driving without a license.
If the driver is convicted on all other charges, the maximum possible sentence is 29 years, the public prosecutor’s office said. He faces a long prison sentence because he is also accused of charges such as negligent homicide resulting in death in an operational area.
The withdrawal of the drunken driving charge, made at a hearing in Erie County Common Pleas Court on Monday, eliminates the possibility that driver Dawann M. Simmons, 42, could face a mandatory minimum prison sentence of three years if convicted of intoxicated manslaughter.
Blood sampling in dispute with DUI charges
The prosecutor’s decision to drop the drunken driving charge was based on the timing of Simmons’ blood draw after the crash, prosecutors said. State police used the blood draw to claim Simmons was under the influence of alcohol.
The withdrawal of the charges is “related to the collection of the blood sample in this case,” Deputy District Attorney Steven Liboski told Judge Daniel Brabender at the hearing on Monday.
State police waited longer than the legal two-hour limit to collect blood samples from Simmons after the crash, which occurred shortly before 12:50 p.m. on August 20 at the intersection of Route 20 and Brickyard Road in North East Township.
According to testimony at Simmons’ preliminary hearing in October, police arranged the blood draw four hours and 18 minutes after Simmons’ arrest.
State law allows for exceptions to the two-hour rule. Liboski said at the preliminary hearing that Simmons needed medical attention and that was one reason for the delay. He also said state police are trying to determine what happened during and after the fatal crash.
Based on the blood sample, investigators estimated that Simmons’ blood alcohol content at the time of the crash was between 0.093% and 0.114%, according to testimony at the preliminary hearing. The legal limit for driving in Pennsylvania is 0.08%.
Toxicological tests showed that Simmons also had marijuana in his system, police said. Evidence of suspected marijuana use will not be presented at trial because the drunk driving charge has been dropped, prosecutors said.
The victim was wearing a safety vest at the time of the attack
Although the DUI-related charges are no longer part of the case, prosecutors can still point to the fact that Giles was killed in an emergency response area. A conviction for negligent homicide in an emergency response area can add up to five years to the seven-year maximum sentence for negligent homicide.
Giles, 53, was killed while directing traffic as part of his firefighting duties for the volunteer Fuller Hose Co. in the Northeast, police said. He was wearing a fluorescent green shirt and holding a bright orange flag when he was struck, police said. He had been directing traffic around the scene of the crash, which involved two cars.
According to state police, Simmons was speeding at 55 mph when his 2007 Lexus RX350 slammed into Giles, throwing him 15 to 20 feet in the air. According to state police, Simmons told investigators he was attempting to change lanes as he approached the crash scene when Giles jumped in front of his Lexus.
“I’m not a criminal,” Simmons said at Monday’s hearing. “I’m trying to prove that this was an honest accident.”
The prosecution assumes that Simmons alone is to blame for the death.
Dispute over representation delays trial against car driver
Simmons’ trial was scheduled to take place on Monday, but Judge Brabender ordered the trial to be postponed for a month at the hearing.
After considering a motion by Simmons’ public defender Keith Clelland, he ruled that he would be allowed to withdraw from the case due to a lack of cooperation from the “combative” Simmons, who is free on bail.
“It’s just one thing at a time,” Clelland said.
Brabender agreed to allow Clelland to withdraw from the case once Simmons hires his own attorney, which Simmons said he plans to do. Brabender said he was concerned that if he let Simmons go to trial without representation or with Clelland as his attorney, the case could be reopened on appeal.
Prosecutor Liboski objected to the postponement of the trial. He was speaking to Brabender when Brabender mentioned the Fuller Hose Co. firefighters who filled several rows of the gallery. Sitting with them was Giles’ wife, Adele.
The Northeast community and the Giles family “have been through enough waiting for this process,” Liboski said.
Adele Giles stood up in the gallery and held up a portrait of her husband.
Contact Ed Palattella at [email protected] or 814-870-1813. Follow him on X @ETNpalatella.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer says no to presidential bid to focus on ‘really hot girl stuff’
The curiosity of a professor emeritus becomes “Queering Rehoboth Beach”
We are stuck with Biden and Trump – News-Herald
About The Author
