The Free Press, Mankato, MN

Local News

October 20, 2008

Man looking for ride, gets hit

A Garden City man who wanted a ride to Waseca ended up in detox, instead, after stepping in front of a car on Highway 169 early Sunday morning.

Bobby Joe Murilla, 27, called the Blue Earth County Sheriff’s Department at about 12:50 a.m. Sunday saying he was drunk, had beaten himself up and wanted a ride to Waseca, said Capt. Rich Murry. Dispatchers told Murilla a ride wouldn’t be provided, but sent a deputy to the area anyway.

When Deputy John Park arrived in Garden City, he found another man, 21-year-old Christopher David Treanor of Mapleton, parked along Highway 169. He told Park he was driving on 169 when he saw a man carrying a red bag just before hearing a thump.

“(Treanor) said he was unsure if he’d hit the person or the bag,” Murry said while describing Park’s report.

Park investigated and later learned Murilla was the man who had been on the highway. Murilla was apparently trying to find a different way to get a ride after being turned down by dispatchers, Murry said.

Murilla was taken to Immanuel St. Joseph’s Hospital in Mankato to be treated for minor injuries. His blood alcohol concentration was tested and showed he was more than twice the legal limit of .08 for driving, Murry said.

Murilla was taken to a detoxification center, but no charges were requested.

Treanor’s car was damaged. It had a broken headlight, a dent in a quarter panel and a jammed passenger door.

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