Texas woman, 18, killed by non-drunk man taking breathalyzer test while driving

Matthew Diebel | USA TODAY

A young Texas woman was killed by a man who told police he was taking a court-ordered breathalyzer test while he was driving.

Alexis Butler, 18, of Arlington was exiting a driveway on Nov. 10 when her car was hit by a pickup truck, local TV station KXAS reported.

According to a police statement quoted by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the driver of the truck told detectives he didn't see Butler’s car because he was performing a DWI test “for three to four seconds.”

The device, called an ignition interlock, prevents a vehicle from starting if the driver has been drinking. Police said he was not impaired at the time.

The Arlington Police Department said its investigators didn’t find any track marks from the truck driven by the 31-year-old man, whom they did not identify. Such track marks would indicate that he tried to stop his vehicle.

Detectives will reconstruct the crash to determine if charges will be brought against the pickup driver, according to police.

“It’s very concerning to us, as a police department, that an individual may be operating some type of ignition equipment while they’re in a moving vehicle,” the department’s Lt. Chris Cook told KXAS.

The impact of the crash caused Butler’s vehicle to leave the road and come to a rest in a nearby grassy area, the local Arlington Voice newspaper reported. The pickup truck struck a fence and a light pole. The driver was not injured.

In a statement, Butler’s family told the KXAS that the teen, who died Friday after a week on life support, was “larger than life.”

“Everyone loved Lexxy — her laugh, her smile, her bubbly personality,” the statement continued. “She touched so many people’s lives in just her short 18 years, more than most will touch in a lifetime.”