By Jon King / jking@whmi.com


A Livingston County man is jailed and facing felony charges after authorities say he injured a woman after throwing sand bags onto I-96.

Michigan State Police say they were dispatched at about 11pm Sunday to westbound I-96 near Old Plank Road in Lyon Township to assist Oakland County Sherriff’s deputies with a traffic crash investigation. Upon arrival, they assumed control over the investigation, which revealed that a male Brighton resident was involved in a single vehicle crash with his truck at that location.

After the accident, the man reportedly left his truck and walked up onto the Old Plank Road overpass, which was under construction. He’s then alleged to have begun heaving 40 pound sandbags from the overpass in an attempt to strike passing vehicles on the freeway below. One sandbag struck a passing vehicle, smashing through the windshield and seriously injuring the female driver, who was taken to a local hospital.

State Police say the suspect then left the scene after being picked up by a passerby who drove him to his home in Brighton. During the drive, troopers say the suspect told the passerby what had happened. That driver then contacted State Police and provided the suspect’s location. As troopers processed the area on the overpass, they say they located several footprints from the same pair of shoes in the sand around the area from which the sandbags were thrown.

Upon contacting the suspect, they report his shoes matched the footprints at the scene and were seized as evidence. The suspect was then interviewed and lodged at the Oakland County Jail pending charges including Felonious Assault Causing Great Bodily Harm and/or Impairment and Throwing Objects at a Motor Vehicle Causing Injury.