Golf cart tragedy in Illinois

Golf carts are great aren't they. All that swooshing about and not having to walk. But as anyone who has driven one will affirm, you can easily get into if you're not paying attention. Or you've been drinking.

An Illinois woman faces vehicular assault and DUI charges following a golf cart accident in Gallatin on Saturday that claimed the life of her husband. Vehicular assault, a charge for causing serious injury to another person by a DUI driver, is a Class D felony in Tennessee with a possible sentence of two to four years in jail for a first-time offender. Vehicular homicide, a Class B felony, involves a fatal crash caused by a DUI driver and carries a possible sentence of 8-12 years in jail.

Lori Doyle's husband Timothy Doyle, 60, was transported to Vanderbilt University Medical Center via medical helicopter after falling off of a golf cart and hitting his head in Foxland Harbor, a golf community along Old Hickory Lake. He died at the hospital just after 8 p.m. on Monday, according to a Vanderbilt spokesperson.

Foxland Harbor

Lori Doyle, 55, was charged with vehicular assault, DUI first offense and implied consent, according to a police affidavit.

When police arrived, an officer observed three open beer cans in the golf cart and one on the roof, the affidavit said As Lori Doyle spoke, the officer said he smelled alcohol on her breath and noticed her eyes were bloodshot and watery, according to court documents.

When asked how much alcohol she had to drink, Lori Doyle told the officer that she, her husband and another couple had all been "downtown" and hired an Uber taxi to get home, the affidavit said. The woman said that everyone drank around 10 beers each.

The Doyles were in town to visit family, Lori Doyle told police. She said she was driving the golf cart, another female was in the front passenger seat, and that her husband and another male were standing on the rear of the golf cart holding on to the roof. Lori Doyle stated she was driving the group to the Foxland club house to get food, and that she turned too fast, causing her husband and the other man to be thrown from the golf cart.

When Timothy Doyle fell, he struck his head on the pavement, his wife told police. The other man sustained abrasions and scrapes to his arms, according to the affidavit.

The document also states that Lori Doyle denied performing field sobriety tests as well as providing a blood sample. She was taken to Sumner Regional Medical Center where a search warrant was executed for a blood draw, according to the affidavit.

Lori Doyle was then taken to the Sumner County Jail, and was released Sunday on a $10,000 composite bond. She is scheduled to appear in Sumner County General Sessions Court at 9 a.m. on Nov. 15.

At least one other golf cart death has occurred in Middle Tennessee in the last five years. In May 2015, a Williamson County teen died after the golf cart he was riding in struck a large brick mailbox. A few weeks prior, three Franklin teens were transported to an area hospital after a golf cart they were riding in overturned in a subdivision near Battle Ground Academy.

Related:

Golf cart joy ride ends in court