(Stillwater, Okla.) — A Perkins teenager who was allegedly driving under the influence of an intoxicating substance when he lost control of his pickup truck northwest of Cushing was charged Tuesday with two counts of first-degree manslaughter in the Oct. 27, 2011, deaths of two of his passengers.
John Tyler Slavens, 19, who was also charged with assault and battery on a Payne County sheriff’s deputy at the accident scene, remains free on $10,000 total bail pending a Feb. 6 court appearance when he can ask for a preliminary hearing on his felony charges.
Two of the pickup’s six passengers, Clarence K. Slavens, 21, of Perkins, and Kimberly J. Davidson, 38, of Cushing, died in the 7:15 p.m. Oct. 27, 2011, crash one-quarter mile west of the Duncan Bridge, authorities said.
Payne County District Attorney Tom Lee said in a news release Tuesday that “Slavens is believed to have been driving under the influence of an intoxicating substance when he lost control of a pickup truck he was driving on 68th Street, just west of the intersection with Mt. Vernon Road, ultimately striking a tree.”
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol, the Payne County Sheriff’s Office and the Cushing Fire Department responded to the fatal one-car collision, Lee said.
Payne County Undersheriff Garry McKinnis was the first law enforcement officer on the scene, which he described as traumatic — occurring in the driveway of a residence.
Four other passengers, Thomas A. Lumpkin, 18, of Perkins; Brian P. Pineda, 15, of Cushing; Angelo J. Pineda, 9, of Cushing; and Johnathon P. Griffith, 16, of Cushing, were treated for their injuries at Cushing Regional Hospital and released, authorities said.
If convicted of two counts of first-degree manslaughter in the fatal one-car collision, John Slavens could be given as much as two life prison terms.
If convicted of pushing and contending with Payne County Sheriff’s Deputy Rockford Brown at the accident scene, the teenager could be given a five-year prison term, court documents show.
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