Officer Reports Alcohol Odor

The other driver involved in the two-car accident that killed Eastern Washington basketball player Rodrick McClure and his stepfather Thursday morning in Las Vegas ran a red light while speeding and might have been drunk at the time of the wreck, according to the Nevada Highway Patrol.

Patrol spokesman Steve Harney told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that the trooper who investigated the early morning accident near McCarron International

Airport smelled alcohol on the breath of Michael Thompson, 20, of Las Vegas, at the scene.

In addition, Harney said the sports car Thompson was driving was traveling more than 70 miles per hour in a 35 mile-per-hour zone when it ran into the Cadillac driven by McClure’s stepfather, James Addison.

McClure, 21, and Addison, 58, were on their way to the airport where McClure was scheduled to catch a 7 a.m. flight to Spokane and rejoin his EWU teammates after spending his three-day Christmas break at home.

The force of the collision knocked Addison’s car 90 feet into a light pole, according to the state patrol. McClure, the Eagles’ starting point guard, was reportedly killed on impact. Addison, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was thrown from the car and died a short time later at the scene.

Thompson was taken to a local hospital where he was listed in serious condition with a broken leg and back injuries.

Harney said Thompson was given a blood-alcohol test at the hospital, but added that it could be a week to 10 days before the results of that test are processed. Pending test results, Thompson could face two counts of felony drunk driving, according to Harney.

, DataTimes