By Elisabeth Arriero and Jonathan McFadden
The Charlotte Observer
CHARLOTTE — A corrections officer who died in December when his car crashed into a median in Union County had a blood alcohol level three times the legal limit, a newly released toxicology report from the state medical examiner’s office said.
Troopers say Sgt. William R. Womack Jr., 61, was driving a 2012 Dodge Charger RT eastbound on N.C. 84 at about 1:30 a.m on Dec. 2. When he turned along a curve, the car traveled left of center of the roadway before crossing over the left shoulder of the road, said N.C. Highway Patrol Lt. Jeff Gordon.
Officials at the time said Womack’s car was traveling more than 100 mph.
The car struck a bricked entrance to the Willoughby Woods subdivision, 3 miles west of Monroe’s city limits, Gordon said. Womack was pronounced dead at the scene.
At the time, Gordon said Womack’s “excessive” speed was a “major factor” in the crash but added that troopers also considered alcohol a contributing factor. No other injuries were reported.
The Dec. 15 medical’s examiner’s report indicated that a blood sample taken from Womack had 240 mg/dL of ethanol, which converts to a 0.24 blood alcohol level. The legal limit in North Carolina for people driving is 0.08.
Womack had been an employee at Lanesboro Correctional Institution since June 2003 when he started as a corrections officer, said Keith Acree, spokesman with the state Department of Public Safety.
Once promoted to sergeant, he was tasked with overseeing other officers in the prison.
Womack was not scheduled to work on the day he died, so officials said they did not believe he was headed to or from work during the crash, Acree said.