A Gainesville man faces a long list of traffic charges, including DUI, following a two-vehicle crash on Cleveland Highway Monday night that left a motorcycle driver with critical injuries.
HALL CO. SHERIFF’S OFFICE (HCSO) NARRATIVE:
“Just after 9 p.m., Hall County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) deputies along with investigators from the agency’s Accident Investigation Unit (AIU) responded to the scene of the crash on Cleveland Highway (U.S. 129) at Hilltop Circle north of Gainesville.
The initial investigation determined the driver of a Harley-Davidson motorcycle was traveling southbound on Cleveland Highway when the driver of a Chevrolet Malibu drove from the parking lot of a convenience store and into the roadway, striking the motorcycle.
The motorcycle driver, identified as Kyle Reece Barnes, 37, of Gainesville, was ejected from the bike onto the roadway. Mr. Barnes suffered multiple injuries, including two broken legs and a broken pelvis. He was transported to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville where he remains at last report.
The driver of the Malibu, identified as Kevin Drew Mitchell, 29, of Gainesville, remained at the scene following the collision. Mr. Mitchell faces charges of DUI, serious injury by vehicle, failure to yield entering roadway, open container violation, seatbelt violation, driving without a license and defective equipment (broken driver’s seat propped up with a blanket). Mr. Mitchell suffered visible facial swelling after he apparently struck something in the vehicle as the result of his being unrestrained in the car.
Cleveland Highway was closed for approximately one and a half hours to allow for the crash investigation and the clearing of wreckage.”
Mitchell was still in the Hall County Jail without bond as of mid-morning Wednesday.