Man dies after falling from moving truck. Meridian driver faces DUI charge
A Meridian woman was arrested after a man fell out of the truck she was driving in Nampa and died at a local hospital.
Dispatchers received several 911 calls on Saturday reporting that a man was injured after falling from the back of a moving pickup truck, the Nampa Police Department said in a news release. The Ada County Coroner’s Office said in a press release identifying the victim as Miguel Martinez that he fell near East Dooley Lane.
Responding officers at the scene found the 46-year-old Martinez, of Nampa, to be nonresponsive, according to the police news release. Officers then felt a pulse after beginning CPR, and he was transported to a Boise hospital by ambulance.
Martinez was pronounced dead at 8:55 p.m. Sunday at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center, according to the coroner. His cause of death was listed as traumatic blunt force injuries, with the manner of death as an accident.
Police said they learned Martinez was riding in the back of the pickup with three children when one of them dropped an item.
“They attempted to alert the driver, but the vehicle accelerated instead of slowing, and as a result, Martinez fell from the vehicle,” police said.
After an investigation, Skylar Keeth, 25, of Meridian, was arrested on a felony charge of aggravated DUI, and the Nampa Police Department said additional charges could be coming.
“This needless death is the result of careless actions and driving under the influence of alcohol,” Nampa Police Cpl. Jeffrey Stark said in a statement. “There is no excuse for drunk driving. The consequences of this crash will last a lifetime for those involved, including three young kids, who were thankfully not physically harmed.”
