2 thrown from car, critically hurt in suspected DUI roundabout crash
An alleged drunk driver left two people in critical condition after an early Friday crash in Richland.
The car was speeding west on Van Giesen Street about 2 a.m. when the driver lost control taking the roundabout at Thayer Drive, Richland police said in a Facebook post.
The car hit a fence and a power pole, flipping it and throwing two of the passengers out, police said.
Witnesses who came across the wreck believed the car hit two pedestrians, but when officers arrived, they figured out what happened.
The driver and all three passengers were taken to a hospital, where two passengers remained in critical condition, Richland police said.
“The driver was found to be impaired from alcohol, and officers are working through the DUI investigation with a driver who is in a hospital,” said the Facebook post.
Police didn’t release the name of the driver, however, Ashante Q. Sanders-Jackson, 22, was booked into the Benton County jail Friday afternoon by Richland police on suspicion of three counts of vehicular assault, according to jail records.
The crash closed Van Giesen Street until about 9:30 a.m while city crews replaced the utility pole.
This story was originally published September 5, 2025 at 10:23 AM.