FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) - A Circle man with a revoked driver’s license has been charged with felony assault following a Steese Highway crash that left a passenger paralyzed.
Nolan Iver Peterson, 26, also was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (https://bit.ly/1mvxj7x) reported.
Circle is northeast of Fairbanks at the end of the Steese Highway. The crash occurred Monday night. Troopers interviewed Peterson and the passenger at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital at about 11:20 p.m.
The passenger told troopers that he had been drinking with Peterson in Central, another Steese Highway community 35 miles west of Circle.
The passenger said he let Peterson drive his vehicle because he thought Peterson was in better shape to drive.
As they drove east toward Circle, the passenger said, Peterson lost control on a turn and the vehicle rolled.
The passenger had no sensation below his neck after the crash. He was transported from Fairbanks to Anchorage for treatment.
Peterson told troopers he was driving 35 mph and he lost control when a tire blew out.
He started walking to Circle, he said, to get help and received a ride from his aunt.
Peterson made contradictory statements about the alcohol he drank, troopers said. He said he drank at the Circle medical clinic after the crash and in the back of his uncle’s truck, troopers said.
Troopers arrested Peterson after his release from the hospital. He’s being held without bail at Fairbanks Correctional Center. Online court documents do not indicate whether he is represented by an attorney.
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Information from: Fairbanks (Alaska) Daily News-Miner, https://www.newsminer.com
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