A Newport man struck by an alleged drunk driver while crossing Memorial Boulevard in a motorized mobility scooter earlier this week has died, Newport Police announced Friday.
John Miles, of 4 Chapel Terrace, Newport, was killed in the crash that occurred at approximately 10:39 p.m. Wednesday at the intersection of Memorial Boulevard and Chapel Street.
Officers responded to 11 Memorial Blvd. after reports of a man lying on the sidewalk. Investigators determined Miles had been crossing northbound through the painted crosswalk when he was struck by a gray Toyota Tacoma driven by Jose Monterroso Villagran, 47, of 44 Warner St., Newport. The force of the collision threw Miles from his scooter approximately 30 feet into the median along the westbound lane of Memorial Boulevard. He was airlifted to Rhode Island Hospital, where he was listed in critical condition before succumbing to his injuries.
Villagran was arrested at the scene Wednesday night and originally charged with DUI resulting in serious bodily injury and driving with a blood alcohol content of .10 to .15, both first offenses. Following Miles’s death, the charge has been upgraded to driving under the influence of liquor or drugs resulting in death, first offense.
Preliminary findings indicate the crosswalk’s safety warning devices were not manually activated at the time of the collision. The investigation is being led by the Criminal Investigation Division and Traffic Investigation Unit, with assistance from the Rhode Island State Police Collision Reconstruction Unit.
Anyone with information can contact Detective John Sullivan at jsullivan@newportri.gov.
