FALLON - A 21-year-old Fallon high school graduate on emergency leave from the Army to attend his brother's funeral was arrested Wednesday night in a fatal accident Monday morning that claimed the life of a 19-year-old Fallon woman.
Justin Speed is being held in the Churchill County Jail on suspicion of felony drunken driving causing death, speeding and failure to maintain a travel lane.
According to the Nevada Highway Patrol, Speed was eastbound on Highway 50 East when he crossed the center line and struck head on a westbound vehicle driven by Samantha Sibis, 19, of Fallon about 5:46 a.m. Monday near McLean Road.
Both Sibis and Speed had to be extricated from their vehicles. Sibis was pronounced dead at the scene. Speed was taken to Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno.
Speed, a 2008 graduate of Churchill County High School, was medically discharged Wednesday night and immediately arrested based on "obvious signs of intoxication at the scene," said NHP spokesman Trooper Chuck Allen.
Allen said confirmation of Speed's alleged level of intoxication is pending results from a series of blood draws taken after the accident.
According to multiple sources, Speed was on leave from Afghanistan visiting family prior to his brother's funeral Friday in California.
Speed's brother, Michael Joseph Allen-East, 22, died Oct. 28 in a car accident while on leave recovering from injuries he sustained in Afghanistan, according to an obituary in the Fresno Bee.
Sibis is survived by her father John Sibis and her mother Jeannie along with many friends and family members. Her service is Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Fallon Convention Center.
The family said all are welcome.
Speed's bail is set at $251,344. If convicted, felony DUI causing death carries a mandatory 2-20 years in prison.
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