San Antonio police: Driver in fatal west side crash was intoxicated

SAN ANTONIO (KTSA News) — The San Antonio Police Department now says the driver in a high-speed crash that killed one person after midnight on Wednesday morning was intoxicated.

Police are not identifying the 27-year-old suspect, but investigators say he was behind the wheel and lost control of the car before it crashed into a utility pole on West Commerce. A passenger, 26-year-old Joe Palacios, was trapped inside the car and firefighters has to cut through the wreckage to get him out. Palacios was taken to the hospital, but he later died.

The suspect is accused of running away from the scene after the crash, but officers caught up with him and put him through a sobriety test. The suspect is now facing a charge of intoxication manslaughter.

KSAT TV reports the crash split the utility pole, and CPS Energy Crews then spent the early morning hours replacing the pole and making other repairs.

Additional reporting by KTSA’s Christian Blood