Harrison Township

Suspected drunken driver crashes into lake

By Julie Snyder
C & G Staff Writer

HARRISON TOWNSHIP — Macomb County Sheriff’s officials believe alcohol, mixed with reckless driving, may have been the perfect cocktail for a vehicle splashing into Lake St. Clair early Nov. 23.

Sheriff Anthony Wickersham said a 41-year-old Grosse Pointe Farms man was “doing doughnuts” in his 2005 Ford Mustang at Harbor Club North apartments early that Friday morning, when he went down a boat ramp and into the lake.

He said the man and his 58-year-old female passenger were heard screaming for help by nearby residents.

“The Harrison Township Fire Department was called out, and they used a ladder to get them out,” said Wickersham. The sheriff said neither the driver nor the passenger was injured, but both were taken to a nearby hospital for examination, as the water was at dangerously cold levels that morning.

The driver’s blood was drawn at the hospital to determine his alcohol level, but Wickersham said it will be two to three weeks before his office receives the results.

“It appears that he was drinking because he was driving recklessly and ended up in the lake, but we don’t know for sure yet so no charges have been filed against him,” he said, adding that the driver did admit to officers at the scene that he was indeed “doing doughnuts” prior to crashing into the lake.

Police said the female passenger, who is not facing any charges, resides in the apartment complex located just north of Gino’s Surf restaurant on Jefferson. The sheriff’s department said the water was approximately 5 feet deep where the car submerged. It was towed out a short time later, Wickersham said.

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Julie Snyder at jsnyder@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1039.