Police: High speed Grundy County crash kills passenger; driver tests positive for alcohol

photo Fatal crash tile

A single vehicle crash in Grundy County, Tenn., was the cause of the first road fatality of the Labor Day weekend for the Tennessee Highway Patrol.

On Friday night around 6 p.m., a Nissan Maxima was traveling north on State Highway 56 at a high speed, according to the THP accident report. The vehicle drove off of the right side of the roadway and struck a tree, which caused the car to flip several times.

The driver, Travis Johnson, 35, of Tracy City, Tenn., was injured; and passenger Karen Scott, of Sewanee, Tenn., was pronounced dead on the scene after being ejected from the vehicle after it struck the tree, according to the report.

Johnson and Scott were not wearing seat belts, which officers believed may have prevented the fatality.

Johnson tested positive for drinking, according to the report, and criminal charges are pending.

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