Somehow no one was seriously injured Tuesday when a young woman drove her car through a wall and into the bedroom of an apartment building in west Starkville.
The Oktibbeha County Sheriff’s Office responded to an accident at 121 Irwin Lane on the property of The Links apartment complex off New Light Road at 6:21 p.m., said OCSO Deputy Chad Garnett.
When deputies arrived, a silver Chevrolet Impala was lodged halfway in the south side of one of the apartment buildings.
Chase Grooms, who lives in the building, said he was talking to his wife on the phone when the accident happened.
“I heard the tires squeal, and I heard it hit the building, so I ran out there to check and see what had happened,” Grooms said. “Then a bunch of people started running up to see what was going on, too. It was so loud.”
Fire Service Coordinator Kirk Rosenhan said the driver, Elizabeth Simpson, entered the apartment complex and, at presumably a high rate of speed, tried to make a sharp left turn near the main office at the complex. Simpson then jumped a curb, went across a small lawn and barreled through the brick wall into one of the bedrooms of Apartment 3.
An estimate of her speed was unavailable, Garnett said, because accident reconstructionists are only called on if there is a fatality or injury that could lead to a fatality.
The man who lived in the apartment was actually in his bed when the incident occurred, according to Rosenhan.
“Of all things, he was lying in his bed at 7 o’clock on a Tuesday,” he said. “He got showered with bricks and plaster and all kind of stuff. He was transported to OCH, but merely as a precaution. He is all right.”
Grooms said when he got around the corner, Simpson, 20, of Starkville, was still in her car, unable to get out of the driver’s side.
“She tried to get out of the driver’s door but she ended up having to climb across the back seat and get out the passenger side back door,” he said.
The incident report states Simpson was cleared on scene by medics, and she declined transport to OCH. She was transported to the Oktibbeha County Jail later charged with DUI. Simpson was released after paying a $799 bond.
“She was a nice, good-looking girl,” Rosenhan said. “I don’t know what the problem was, but it was real sad. She is just damn lucky she didn’t kill that guy.”
Simpson also hit the air conditioning unit against the building, Grooms said, cutting it off for an apartment upstairs. He said to his knowledge, all the residents of the two apartments had been moved. No one answered the door at either apartment on Wednesday afternoon.
Garnett said that no other charges are likely to be brought because it is considered a traffic accident.
“The way it works, if a vehicle destroys the property, then it just goes under her insurance,” Garnett said. “But if it was something like a malicious mischief they could ask for restitution in criminal court and the judge could order that. On this, it is considered damage done by the car so the vehicle insurance should cover it.”
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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