Published: October 23, 2008 09:05 am      

Cooper indicted for intox assault

The Henderson County grand jury on Wednesday indicted a local business owner in connection to a March 23 wreck that happened between Athens and Malakoff.

Kenneth Duane “Pete” Cooper, 48, was indicted for intoxication assault, a third-degree felony. If found guilty, Cooper could face a prison sentence of two to 10 years and a fine of up to $10,000.

Cooper is a part owner of the Cooper Funeral Home of Athens.

On March 23, Cooper’s 2002 Chevrolet Suburban collided on State Highway 31 with a 1996 Plymouth Voyager van driven by 40-year-old Christy Arlien Adams of Murchison. Cooper, Adams and Franklin Pinkerton — a passenger in Adams’ vehicle — were all injured. Cooper and Adams were sent to East Texas Medical Center in Athens.

According to police reports, Cooper’s blood-alcohol level was .26, more than three times the legal limit in Texas. The legal blood alcohol level in Texas is .08 percent.

Also indicted Wednesday was Christopher Blane McFaul, 20, of Kemp for capital murder. McFaul faces life in prison or the death penalty.

McFaul was arrested in August for the death of a two-year-old Tool boy, Douglas Crickmore Jr.

The charge is capital murder because Crickmore Jr. was less than six years old. A July 23 autopsy report said the death was caused by blunt force.

McFaul is the second man indicted for the death of a two-year-old in the Tool area in the last year.

Michael Lyndon Whitman, 27, accepted a plea agreement for a life sentence in prison without the possibility of parole in June.