BRYAN, Texas — A Midland man has been indicted on a manslaughter charge for a crash that killed his passenger. He is also facing two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Colton Bradley, 22, was driving a Camaro northbound on 29th Street just before 5 a.m. on February 29 when he allegedly ran a red light. A GMC truck going westbound on Briarcrest then hit the Camaro on the passenger side, sending the Camaro across the intersection where it smashed into a Buick Verono waiting at the intersection.
James "Ross" Ragsdale, 27, died at the hospital. Bradley was arrested at the scene and had been charged with intoxication manslaughter as well as two counts of intoxication assault. The crash shut down the intersection for several hours.
1 person dead, 3 others hurt in crash at busy Bryan intersection
There were two people in the truck that suffered injuries and were taken to the hospital. The driver of the Buick was also hurt. All three were later released.
During the investigation, authorities said Bradley did not have a valid driver's license. Witnesses at the scene said Bradley ran the red light and officers said Bradley told them he and Ragsdale had been "drinking all night." Another officer said he overheard a phone call Bradley made to a person at the scene of the crash and he allegedly said he had just killed his best friend.
The officer who took Bradley to the hospital to be checked out said he would not voluntarily give a sample of his blood to be checked for its alcohol content, but investigators did request a search warrant to get a sample. Investigators said they were able to look at traffic surveillance video before, during and after the crash. According to the police report, the traffic light was red up to 30 seconds before Bradley entered the intersection.
Bradley was released from the Brazos County Jail on March 2.