Charges in fatal wreck near Seneca dismissed

Prosecutors have announced the dismissal of charges of felony driving under the influence resulting in death against a Westminster man. The highway patrol had charged Drew Woodall Greene in its investigation of a five-vehicle collision that took the lives of two Iva residents the night of September 6 near Seneca. Michele Wright and Joshua Silvers were killed when their car was hit by Greene’s truck traveling 72 miles an hour in the intersection of 76/123 and the Sheep Farm Road. Law enforcement officers found what were called “a significant number of empty beer cans” in the back of Greene’s truck and on the roadway. And Greene, according to the office of the Tenth Circuit Solicitor, was incoherent and disoriented at the scene. But on November 7, the Toxicology Division of the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division issued a report that indicated blood samples provided by Greene were negative for ethanol. Two separate samples were tested and supported the conclusion that Greene’s blood alcohol level at the time of the accident was 0.0, and further tests revealed no drugs in his system. According to the announcement issued by the office of Solicitor Chrissy Adams, “Hospital records revealed that Mr. Greene suffers from lactic acidosis, a condition marked by a dangerous increase of lactic acid levels in the bloodstream. The levels of lactic acid present in Mr. Greene’s body were such that disorientation, confusion, loss of consciousness, and seizures would likely result….The symptoms of lactic acidosis can be easily confused with someone who appears to be in an intoxicated state. However, alcohol was not a factor in this incident.” The announcement concludes, “Based upon the evidence in this case, criminal prosecution in this matter is not supported by law and charges against Mr. Greene have been dismissed.”