Arizona man with potentially fatal BAC level arrested for OWI after crash on I-80 in Iowa City

Lang
6/30/24

An alleged drunk driver with a potentially fatal amount of alcohol in his system has been arrested after a crash on Interstate 80 in Iowa City.

Iowa City Police were called to an accident involving a 2010 Ford Crown Victoria on westbound I-80 near the Dubuque Street exit just before 9:15 Saturday night. Investigators say the driver…20-year-old Gregor Pratt of Peoria, Arizona…had an open can of “The Beast” hard energy drink under his seat, with a half-empty box of the same Monster-produced beverage on the side of the road. Paramedics say Pratt was in and out of consciousness in the ambulance. Pratt reportedly showed signs of impairment, and his breath alcohol level was measured at .375% on a portable Breathalyzer test. He refused Datamaster testing.

A University of Toledo study indicates any blood alcohol level above .31% has the same effects as surgical amnesia, with risk of onset coma, the possibility of acute alcohol poisoning, and death due to respiratory arrest likely in 50% of those drinkers.

Pratt is charged with Operating While Intoxicated.