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Cordova-Area Man Indicted For Vehicular Homicide In Deadly DUI Crash Last Year

A Cordova-area man was indicted Thursday on vehicular homicide involving alcohol and other charges stemming from a head-on crash last year on Walnut Grove that ...
Local 24 generic – gavel justice court

A Cordova-area man was indicted Thursday on vehicular homicide involving alcohol and other charges stemming from a head-on crash last year on Walnut Grove that killed another driver and critically injured a passenger, said Shelby County Dist. Atty. Gen. Amy Weirich.

Defendant Melvin Deener, 39, also was indicted on charges of vehicular homicide involving recklessness, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon (a vehicle), drunken driving, reckless driving, and possession of a handgun while under the influence.

He is free on $75,000 bond.

Police investigators said 32-year-old Jeremy Boatwright of Memphis was killed around 2.45 a.m. on July 23, 2017, when Deener’s eastbound pickup truck crossed the concrete median on Walnut Grove near I-240 and hit Boatwright’s westbound car head-on.

The crash also critically injured the victim’s 30-year-old female passenger.

The case is being handled by Asst. Dist. Atty. Kenya Smith of the DA’s DUI Prosecution Unit whose members work with local law enforcement seeking to reduce the number of DUI-related fatalities and injuries.

The unit also conducts training sessions to update law enforcement officers on changes in traffic and DUI laws.

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