BENSON – A tractor trailer driver who caused a deadly eight vehicle wreck on Interstate 95 in Johnston County is being held in the Johnston County Jail under a $1 million bond.
The Highway Patrol has charged Curtis Stevan Linen of Cleveland, Ohio with felony death by motor vehicle-DWI, commercial motor vehicle driving while impaired, and a lane control violation.
At 3:29pm Saturday, troopers said Linen was traveling in his red 18 wheeler northbound on I-95 near the 78 mile marker, just south of Benson. Linen was in the left lane and began to merge into the right line to pass a white Honda Accord also traveling northbound. The semi collided with a blue Honda Accord in the right lane, then swerved back left striking the white Honda, spinning it around then striking the white Honda a second time. The white Honda and tractor trailer then went into the median and through the guardrail into the southbound lanes of I-95.
The white Honda collided head-on with a southbound grey Acura. The tractor trailer collided head-on with a white Chevy passenger car. A grey passenger car, grey Toyota SUV and a white Chevy truck all traveling southbound collided with the side of the 18 wheeler that had stopped across both southbound lanes.
The driver of the white passenger car struck head-on by the semi, 24 year-old Michael Shane Wallace Jr. of Fayetteville, was killed in the collision.
Twelve additional occupants in the vehicles were injured. 9 sustained minor injuries and 3 sustained critical life-threatening injuries. At last report one victim still remains in critical condition. Another remains in serious condition. The names of the injured have not been released.
![](https://i0.wp.com/jocoreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Linen-Curtis-Stevan-03-16-20.jpg?resize=199%2C195&ssl=1)
Troopers said Curtis Linen was taken into custody and a blood test was given before he was confined in the Johnston County Jail. Troopers consulted with the Johnston County District Attorney’s Office before lodging the charges against the 64 year-old truck driver.
The NC Highway Patrol’s Accident Reconstruction Unit responded and assisted with the investigation and mapped the scene with a drone.
The NC DOT and local law enforcement detoured traffic around the crash scene until the interstate was fully reopened around 8:30pm Saturday.
Photo courtesy Eastern Fire Photography