Rx Drugs May be Involved in Trucker CTA Crash

By Alison Gonzalez

Published on May 05, 2008

The driver, 64-year-old David Wells, slammed his semi-tractor trailer into the Chinatown CTA station just before 5:30 p.m. Twenty-one people — including six children — were injured, and two people died at the scene. Both deaths were ruled accidents.

Wells was reportedly seen acting oddly at the scene. A later search discovered he was carrying another person's prescription at the time.

His odd behavior continued when Wells was taken into custody for two days. Sources said he refused to put clothes on and urinated on the wall during his lockup. He also refused to give a statement to police and declined a urine test.

Police said drugs and alcohol were not a factor in the crash, but they are looking at other factors. Investigators are awaiting results from a more extensive toxicology test to see if the prescription drugs were involved.

Police are also not ruling out mechanical failure of the truck. Initial investigations showed the truck left no skid marks, which could mean a possible malfunction.

Wells was cited for negligent driving. He was driving a truck for Whiteline Express, based in Plymouth, Michigan.