Police: Summerhill woman was driving drunk when she hit house, killed man inside
Oct. 20—A Summerhill woman was intoxicated when she drove her truck into a house near South Fork on Oct. 8, killing a 68-year-old man, Adams Township police allege.
According to Officer Lee Hill, Carly Ann Croyle, 23, of the 400 block of Jackson Street, lost control of the Dodge Ram pickup she was driving and struck a utility pole, then crashed into a house in the 900 block of Ragers Hill Road, killing Gerald Weyandt Jr., who was sleeping in a chair in a sitting room in the front of the residence.
The truck crashed partially through the house, pushing Weyandt through a wall, Cambria County Coroner Jeffrey Lees said. Weyandt died instantly from multiple blunt-force trauma, Lees said.
Weyandt's wife was asleep in a bedroom and was not injured.
Croyle suffered injuries to her face and left knee. She was taken to Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center, where a blood test allegedly showed her alcohol content was .14%. The legal limit in Pennsylvania is .08%.
A criminal complaint details the alleged events leading to the fatal crash.
Croyle allegedly told police she drank four or five Twisted Teas and one shot at the Johnstown Inn before leaving close to midnight in a friend's Dodge Ram and heading down Frankstown Road.
"I remember hitting a telephone pole and a house," Croyle said, according to the complaint.
Police secured video from the Johnstown Inn, which reportedly showed Croyle consuming multiple drinks.
Croyle was charged with homicide by vehicle while DUI, involuntary manslaughter, driving under the influence of alcohol and reckless driving. She was arraigned by on-call District Judge Susan Gindlesperger, of Stonycreek Township, and sent to Cambria County Prison in Ebensburg, after failing to post 10% of $75,000 bond.
"This is a tragedy that was entirely avoidable," District Attorney Gregory Neugebauer said. "This is an unfortunate reminder of the consequence of choosing to drive impaired."
