Woman and 6-year-old great-grandson killed in DUI crash, South Carolina cops say
A 70-year-old woman and her 6-year-old great-grandson were thrown from their car in a deadly DUI crash, South Carolina officials said.
Police said Jose Martin Guzman-Pliego rear-ended Gladys Holbrooks’ Ford Fiesta with his Dodge Ram pickup around 6:45 p.m. Nov. 4 on Calhoun Memorial Highway near Cartee Road, WYFF reported.
The Ford veered off the roadway and overturned several times, throwing both Holbrooks and her great-grandson Cameron Durham from the car, the outlet said.
They died of injuries sustained from “blunt force trauma,” Pickens County Coroner Kandy Kelley told WHNS.
Three other passengers in Holbrooks’ car and Guzman-Pliego were taken to the hospital, WSPA reported. Their conditions are not known at this time.
Guzman-Pliego is charged with two counts of felony DUI with death and two counts of felony DUI with great bodily injury, WHNS reported.
Cameron was a first-grader at Pickens Elementary School, a spokesperson with the School District of Pickens County told McClatchy News.
“Our prayers and condolences go out to the family, their friends, his classmates, and our educators who were touched by the life of Cameron,” the spokesperson said.
Pickens Elementary Principal Donna Harden said in a statement to McClatchy News that the school was saddened to hear of the accident.
“Cameron always had a smile for his teachers and friends. He will be remembered as a happy, caring child who was full of joy,” she said.
Pickens Elementary School first grade and kindergarten teacher Katie Taylor said in a statement to McClatchy News that she “will always remember Cameron’s sweet smile and charming personality.”
“He never passed up the opportunity to tell a good story or help a friend,” Taylor said. “He loved making us smile and laugh through the stories he told and the connections that he made with anything we were learning — especially if he could relate it to fishing.”
Guzman-Pliego was denied bond during a Nov. 7 hearing and is being held at the Pickens County Detention Center, WSPA reported.
Calhoun Memorial Highway near Cartee Road is nearly 120 miles northwest of Columbia.
This story was originally published November 8, 2021 at 1:25 PM with the headline "Woman and 6-year-old great-grandson killed in DUI crash, South Carolina cops say."
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