At 12:50 a.m. on February 4th, police were dispatched to 1200 E. Saint Patrick Street for a report of a hit and run crash that occurred in the parking lot of the address. Police arrived and located a parked pickup truck with damage from a recent collision.
According to witnesses, the pickup was struck by a white sedan prior to the sedan leaving the scene of the incident. At around the same time, police observed a white sedan fail to stop at a stop sign at the intersection of Elm Avenue and E. Saint Patrick Street. A traffic stop was initiated on the vehicle. As police made contact with the driver, identified as 39-year-old Brandon Decker of Rapid City, the officer immediately noted the strong smell of an alcoholic beverage, along with burnt marijuana, coming from the vehicle.
Decker was asked to step out of the vehicle and police observed his inability to stand without holding onto the vehicle. Following a DUI investigation, it was determined that Decker was too impaired to safely operate a motor vehicle. Police located marijuana on his person incident to arrest, along with a glass pipe inside the vehicle.
At the conclusion of the incident, Decker was placed under arrest for DUI (6th), Accident Hit and Run, Possession of Marijuana, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Stop Sign Violation, and No Proof of Insurance. Decker was subsequently transported to the Pennington County Jail.
