COVINGTON, Ga. – Newton County Sheriff’s deputies arrested a Covington man and charged him with first-degree homicide by vehicle after a woman he was suspected of with hitting with his truck died at an Atlanta hospital, according to a sheriff’s office report.
Miles Alexander Bryant, 29, was charged in the death of 26-year-old Heather Wise, of Oxford. Wise and 21-year-old Brandi Dale, of Monticello, were struck by a truck allegedly driven by Bryant in the early morning hours of Nov. 25.
Wise died at WellStar Atlanta Medical Center Nov. 26.
According to the report, Deputy Patrick Gilbert was dispatched to Campbell Road at about 2:20 a.m. Nov. 25 on a suspicious call. When he arrived on the scene, he found two women had been struck by a truck. The driver of the truck was reportedly under the influence.
Cpl. John Redlinger arrived at the scene and observed Dale standing over Wise. Dale told him she and Wise were walking and were hit by a truck. According to the report, evidence showed the women had been walking in the southbound lane of Rocky Point Road.
Redlinger made contact with Bryant and asked him what happened. Bryant reportedly said he was headed to town and the girls must have been on the yellow line when he hit them. Later, he said they were walking on the white line.
According to the report, while talking with Bryant, Redlinger smelled alcoholic beverage emitting from his breath. Bryant reportedly consented to standard field testing.
After the tests, Gilbert arrested Bryant and read him the Georgia implied consent law for people over 21 and Bryant reportedly consented to the test. He was transported to the Newton County Jail, where he was given the state breath test.
According to the report, the first reading at 3:53 a.m. was a reading of 0.179. A second reading was done five minutes later with a reading of 0.171.
The legal limit is 0.08.
Bryant was released to the jail staff Nov. 25, charged with DUI (alcohol), improper lane usage and serious injury by vehicle.
On Nov. 29, investigators secured a search warrant and impounded a vehicle from an address on Rocky Point Road. Bryant was arrested and charged in Wise’s death the next day.
