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DUCHESNE — A judge has issued an arrest warrant for a man who police say was driving under the influence and texting when he hit a Roosevelt woman in January, nearly severing her left leg.
Jake Antonio Arrats failed to appear for an arraignment hearing Thursday in 8th District Court, prompting Judge Lyle Anderson to issue a $15,000 warrant for his arrest.
Arrats, 27, is charged with DUI, a third-degree felony; texting while driving, a class B misdemeanor; and four other misdemeanor traffic offenses.
Witnesses recount tragic accident caused by texting driver
Jason Hollobaugh and his roommate, Robert Stoney, had run outside about 5:20 p.m. Monday to find Keri Houston lying next to her crunched car, screaming in pain. The men "did what needed to be done."Roosevelt police say Keri Houston, 18, was sitting in her parked car Jan. 28 when she was sideswiped by Arrats. Houston's door was open and her left foot was planted on the ground outside when the crash happened, causing a near-complete amputation of her leg in two places.
Arrats was under the influence of drugs and alcohol and was texting at the time of the crash, according to police.
A group of good Samaritans, including a former Marine who fashioned a makeshift tourniquet out of his belt, cared for Houston before paramedics arrived. Doctors have told Houston's family that the group's actions likely saved her life.
