http://tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art ... /606090396

It doesn't mention illegal in the article, but it was mentioned on local news.

Fleeing SUV kills Mt. Juliet pair, police say
Driver in hospital; charges pending

By KATE HOWARD
Staff Writer

6-9-06


A man and his wife were killed and another person was injured Thursday when a Madison man fled from police and crashed his SUV into two cars, Lakewood police said.

Metro police said Gustavo Rayes Garcia, 27, of 814 Anderson Lane, was going south on Old Hickory Boulevard when he collided with two cars traveling north near Southfork Boulevard.




Garcia's vehicle crashed into a blue Oldsmobile, crossed Old Hickory Boulevard and collided head-on with a silver Buick.

The driver of the Buick, Sean Paul Wilson, 38, of Mt. Juliet, was pronounced dead at the scene. His wife, Donna Lynne Wilson, 47, a passenger, died later at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

The Oldsmobile's driver was in stable condition at St. Thomas Hospital on Thursday evening, police said.

Lakewood police said that Garcia drove away from a traffic stop near the Hermitage Golf Course minutes before the crashes.

Chief Lawrence Lee said he and another officer pulled Garcia's red SUV over about 11:30 a.m. on Old Hickory Boulevard because Garcia was driving erratically. Lee said that several open beer containers were visible in the truck and that Garcia had glassy eyes and slurred speech.

"I was talking to him. He threw the car in drive and nearly tried to run over me," Lee said.

Lee and another officer followed Garcia but did not activate their lights. They lost sight of the truck and came upon the crash about a mile and a half later.

"This was not a pursuit," Lee said.

Garcia has been arrested previously on charges of drunken driving, evading and resisting arrest, leaving the scene of an accident and driving on a revoked license, Metro police spokeswoman Amanda Sluss said.

He suffered serious injuries in the crash and is in Vanderbilt hospital. Charges against him are pending, police said. •

A Mt. Juliet couple died Thursday when their car, in center, was hit by a fleeing SUV, left, police said. (MATTHEW H. STARLING / FOR THE TENNESSEAN)