A driver is facing charges of homicide and driving under the influence of alcohol after an early-morning crash Oct. 11 killed a pedestrian on a Buckhead sidewalk.
The Atlanta Police Department did not immediately identify the victim. The driver was identified as Gabriel Zamora, 30, whose home address was not immediately available.
Illegal street racing has been an issue on Peachtree Road and other parts of the city, and City Council President Felicia Moore suggested on her social media accounts that the crash was connected to such racing. However, APD said there is no evidence of that. “We do not believe this incident is related to street racing,” said APD spokesperson Marla Jean Rooker.
The collision is the second pedestrian killing in Buckhead in recent weeks. On Sept. 29, a Buckhead man was killed while walking his dog on a Colonial Homes Drive sidewalk by a car that left the road and hit other vehicles and a building.
According to APD, the Oct. 11 incident began around 1:25 a.m. when a Cadillac allegedly driven by Zamora was traveling at a “high rate of speed” northbound on Peachtree Road near Mathieson Drive. The Cadillac struck a Jeep Wrangler from behind. According to APD, the Cadillac then left the roadway, hit the pedestrian on the sidewalk, and overturned, striking two other vehicles in a parking lot.
The Jeep was forced off the road and entered the parking lot of a DXL clothing store at 3157 Peachtree, where it hit three other vehicles.
According to APD, Zamora was treated at a hospital but had no “substantial injuries.” Two occupants of the Jeep were not taken to any hospital, and the other vehicles that were struck were unoccupied, according to APD.
According to APD, the initial charges against Zamora include homicide by vehicle, DUI, failure to maintain lane, and possession of an open container of alcohol.