Woman charged after multivehicle crash on I-75 kills 1, injures 2

Evelyn Nowell

Credit: Bartow County Sheriff's Office

Credit: Bartow County Sheriff's Office

Evelyn Nowell

A chain-reaction crash on I-75 involving three vehicles Sunday night left one person dead and another facing criminal charges, officials said.

The crash started when a woman driving a Chevrolet Impala was stopped in the right lane on I-75 North in Bartow County at about 11:55 p.m., the Georgia State Patrol said in a statement. The woman, later identified as Evelyn Nowell, 73, of Cedartown, was under the influence of alcohol, the GSP said.

A tractor-trailer then came up behind her car and swerved to the left at the last minute, hitting the Impala. That caused the tractor-trailer to leave the right side of the highway, hitting a Honda Accord that was parked in the emergency lane.

The Accord, which had two adults and a child inside, was pushed into a guardrail, coming to a final stop under the tractor-trailer, the GSP said.

A 56-year-old woman identified as Bobbie Whitman of Emerson, who was a passenger in the Accord, was killed in the crash, according to the GSP. She was found dead when authorities arrived on the scene.

The driver of the Accord was injured and taken to Kennestone Hospital. An 8-year-old boy who was also in the car was not injured.

Nowell was injured and taken to Cartersville Medical Center. She was charged with DUI,  homicide by vehicle in the first degree and improper slowing or stopping on a roadway.

The driver of the tractor-trailer was not injured, officials said.

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