COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – A Novi, Michigan man was arraigned Monday on charges of operating while intoxicated third offense and OUI-occupant under 16 child endangerment after he allegedly crashed his mini-van into a ditch and abandoned his two children by the side of the road in Branch County’s Girard Township.
Bond for 32-year-old Chad Hewitt is set at $25,000. He is scheduled to appear for a probable cause hearing June 7, 2018.
The accident was reported early Saturday afternoon on East County Line Road at Hadlock Road south of Tekonsha.
Branch County 911 Central Dispatch said a passing motorist stopped at the scene and called 911, reporting there was a man with a white mini-van, possibly intoxicated, along with two small children, with his van still in the ditch.
Hewitt could face additional charges. Branch County Undersheriff Keith Eichler says they are awaiting results of a blood draw to determine if Hewitt’s blood alcohol content was at least .17 which put him into the “super drunk” territory under Michigan law.
Eichler added a family member picked up all three and left with the man being spotted a short time later in Coldwater and arrested.
