chapel hill, north carolina – Zachary Rice, the UNC football player charged in the Jan. 21 crash that killed a classmate, appeared in court Thursday.
Rice, 20, a student and football player at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, was charged with driving while under the age of 21 and speeding.
Although Rice was not in the car that crashed on January 21 and killed 21-year-old UNC student Molly Rotunda, court documents say Rice's car was traveling at 194 mph. It is shown that the vehicle was just 15 yards behind Mr. Rotunda's car.
Rice and his attorney entered an Orange County courtroom Thursday for his first court appearance. Rice did not speak at all during the hearing. Rice also declined to speak with WRAL News outside court.
Seven people have been charged in connection with the crash, including Fremyya Brewer, 20, another UNC student who was driving the car Rotunda was in, and her passenger, Brianna Pinson. included. Brewer and Pinson survived the crash.
An employee at the Still Life bar in Chapel Hill was also charged in connection with an accident involving underage drinking.
Rice's next court date was scheduled for April 19.
Officers responding to the Jan. 21 crash found the Mercedes “overturned in the grass,” and the state medical examiner's office report said Rotunda was “carried away by onlookers driving behind her.” “He was pulled from the back seat of the vehicle.” Vehicle before collision. ”
Rotunda went into cardiac arrest while in the ambulance and was pronounced dead shortly after.
According to documents, Brewer, who survived the crash and is facing multiple felony charges, admitted to driving the car and drinking a Lemon Drop cocktail at the Still Life bar before the fatal crash.
A search warrant for Brewer's medical records from UNC Hospitals said his blood alcohol level at the time of the accident was 0.15 (the state legal limit is 0.08).
WRAL News has previously learned that racing may have contributed to the accident, and that is further supported by documents.
