A woman struck by an allegedly intoxicated driver in St. Paul on Wednesday night as she was walking across an intersection shortly after leaving work suffered permanent brain damage, authorities say.
Joy Hundley, 51, of South St. Paul was taken to Regions Hospital for treatment of a fractured skull and bleeding to her brain after the crash about 9:20 p.m. in the intersection of Robert and Fillmore Streets, legal documents say.
The driver who hit her, Gary Thomas Schmalz, was charged Friday with two counts of criminal vehicular operation that caused great bodily harm while under the influence of alcohol, according to the criminal complaint filed against him in Ramsey County District Court.
Police arrived to the crash scene to find paramedics treating Hundley after a 19-year-old bystander had performed CPR.
Hundley was taken to Regions Hospital, where she remained in critical condition Friday morning, according to the hospital.
Schmalz, who was driving a Pontiac Vibe, told police he was turning left onto Robert Street from Fillmore Avenue and had not seen the woman crossing the road because she was in dark clothing, charges say.
He estimated he was driving 10 to 15 mph when the woman “came out of nowhere,” the complaint said.
He said he knew he’d struck someone because the woman’s head “hit the hood of his car,” charges say.
An officer detected an odor of mouthwash from the 63-year-old from Greenville, S.C., who said he was in town to visit family, according to an affidavit for a search warrant in the case. Police asked him whether he had been drinking. Schmalz said he had a few beers by the river and his last drink was within 30 minutes of the crash, the affidavit said.
He also said he’d taken a shot of whiskey and smoked marijuana but denied feeling any effects from the substances, charges say.
A woman who witnessed the crash told police she saw Hundley lying in the intersection and checked on her. As she did, she asked Schmalz if he’d called the police.
Schmalz “chuckled” and said no, the complaint said.
Another witness said Schmalz sat against the hood of his car “with a smirk on his face” while others attended to Hundley, according to legal documents.
When that woman asked him to move his car to make way for medics, Schmalz reportedly replied, “I’m not moving,” the complaint said.
Several opened and unopened containers of beer and liquor were found in Schmalz’s vehicle, including a bottle under the driver’s seat, police said.
Schmalz failed field-sobriety tests administered at the scene, charges say, and a portable breath test indicated his blood-alcohol concentration was 0.139. The legal limit to drive in Minnesota is 0.08. A judge granted a search warrant to draw Schmalz’s blood for testing.
Hundley is expected to be in the intensive care unit for several weeks, the complaint said.
The night-shift worker at Comcast had just left work before she was struck Wednesday night.
Neither Hundley nor Schmalz’s family could be immediately reached for comment. No attorney was listed for Hundley in court records.
Mara H. Gottfried contributed to this report.