Suspect in DUI crash that severely injured La Porte mother turns self in, police say
LA PORTE, Texas (KTRK) -- James Hutchins, the suspect in a DUI crash that severely injured a stay-at-home mother in La Porte, has turned himself in, police say.
On Sept. 6, Kelley Schoppe's SUV was demolished by a drunk driver as she tried to deliver cookies to nurses working overtime in the aftermath of Harvey.
Hutchins, 27, has been charged with intoxication assault in connection with the crash.
Schoppe has had seven surgeries thus far with a broken hip, broken legs and severely damaged arms.
"She said without a blink, without a pause, 'I will never be able to hold my babies again,'" Conner said.
According to court documents, Hutchins' blood alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit. At the time of the crash, he was on probation for a drug charge, DPS records stated.
Hutchins was also injured in the crash.
La Porte police said an arrest warrant was obtained as Hutchins was going into surgery. With resources being diverted due to Hurricane Harvey, police said the department didn't have the resources to put an officer at Hutchins' bed. They didn't believe he would be able to leave the hospital.
He did.
Now, Schoppe's mother-in-law admits to feeling a range of emotions from anger to frustration, but most of all, simply doesn't want this to happen to another family.
To assist the Schoppe family, visit their GoFundMe account.
