LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — A man being arraigned Monday on a count of DUI appeared to learn for the first time during the hearing that the crash he’s charged in killed someone.
In addition to the driving under the influence charge, 39-year-old Ronald Smith is accused of failure to maintain insurance and driving with expired registration plates.
Smith was driving on Winchester Road in Lexington Friday night when he crossed the center line and struck a vehicle being driven by 54-year-old Billy Joe Williamson, Jr.
Williamson was transported to University of Kentucky Chandler Hospital, where he died of his injuries, according to the coroner’s office.
Smith blew a .250 on a breathalyzer after the crash, according to his arrest citation.
The arresting officer noted in the citation that Smith had “glossy blood shot eyes, odor of alcoholic beverage about his person, slurred speech, unsteady balance and opened alcoholic containers in the vehicle.”
At his arraignment Monday, Judge T. Bruce Bell appointed a public defender to Smith’s case and entered a not guilty plea on his behalf.
Bell also decided not to change Smith’s $5,000 full cash bond, at which point a prosecutor spoke up to mention that the case involved a “homicide” investigation.
Smith, who appeared by video from jail, was visibly surprised. When the judge confirmed to Smith that the case involved a homicide and that there might be more charges filed against him, Smith appeared to curse as he walked off camera.
Smith was charged with driving under the influence once before. In 2019, in Louisville, he was charged with DUI after being pulled over for going 90 in a 55-mile-per-hour zone, according to his citation in that case.
In Smith’s 2024 case, he is set to be back in district court this Friday.
Billy Joe Williamson, Jr. was an employee here at LEX 18. He will be dearly missed by the LEX 18 family.
