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Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Danny Ray Smith, 64, is accused of driving under the influence of alcohol when, according to police, he struck and killed a little girl and injured her mother and sister after the Regional Air Show. The court documents reveal more details about what happened on Saturday in Northport. Police say the Burks family was enjoying the air show while Smith was hosting a watch party at his business, Dixie Air. Around 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Tanya Burks, along with her two children, were walking in the grass next to 5th Street in Northport. Court documents say a black 2008 GMC Sierra, driven by Smith, veered onto the shoulder of the road and hit Tanya Burks and her children. A witness told police that the truck kept going for another 100 to 200 yards. The witness says Smith got out of the truck, walked toward the victims, but then went back to his truck and put it in drive. That's when a Northport officer stopped Smith, who got out of his vehicle and consented to a field sobriety test. Smith's blood alcohol content was 1.3, well over the legal limit of 0.8. Court documents also say that Smith smelled of alcohol and didn't perform well on the sobriety test. After conducting the sobriety test, the Northport officer arrested Smith. Investigators at the scene say they found hair and tissue on Smith's truck, apparently transferred to the vehicle when police say he hit the Burks family. Haley Burks, age 8, was taken to DCH Hospital where she died from her injuries. Her 3-year-old sister Natalee was released from the hospital Monday. Tanya, the 28-year-old mother, was released from the hospital today. She has a broken back from the hit. Smith has been charged with vehicular homicide, assault and leaving the scene of an accident. He bonded out on Sunday afternoon. He pleaded guilty to a previous DUI charge 30 years ago.
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Keywords: Regional Air Show, accident, DUI, killed, Northport,
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