Driver was allegedly high when he rammed into line of cars in Franklin County, killing 1

A 28-year-old man was allegedly high on cocaine when he slammed into a line of cars stopped for road construction in northern Franklin County.

The August 2023 chain-reaction crash on Highway 17 left a 21-year-old Othello man dead and another seriously hurt, according to newly filed court documents.

Nearly nine months later, Nicholas L. Abbott has been charged with vehicular homicide and vehicular assault in Franklin County Superior Court.

While court documents say his most recent home was in Richland, Abbott appeared by video on Tuesday, April 9, from Virginia for his arraignment. The hearing was rescheduled so he could talk to an attorney.

Abbot was in a 2008 Dodge Ram pickup on Aug. 7, heading south on the rural two-lane highway that connects Franklin County with Othello.

Abbot’s supervisor told state troopers he was supposed to be traveling back from Moses Lake to Othello after picking up some hardware. He had driven about 20 miles past the Othello exit when he crashed.

Two witnesses said he was driving erratically for 20 miles. He stopped in the road for no reason, swerved across the road and drove into the oncoming lane, according to court documents.

When he came upon the line of cars waiting for some road construction in the southbound lane about 12:45 p.m., Abbot didn’t stop, said the documents. His pickup slammed into a back of a Honda Civic

Five people were inside, including passenger Jesus Camacho-Augustin, 21, and driver Valentin Galvez-Gonzalez, 24, of Othello.

Camacho-Augustin died at the scene and Galvez-Gonzalez was seriously hurt and taken to Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland.

The crash pushed the Civic into a Hyundai Sonata in front of it. Two other cars ended up being damaged too.

Washington State Patrol toxicology tests on Abbot’s blood later found signs that he had cocaine in his system, said the documents.