Huron County View

Man injured by drunk driver says injuries took him out of work, could lose home




BAD AXE — Michael J. Woolford, who in March collided head-on with a vehicle carrying four men, inflicting multiple fractures and a “traumatic” brain injury, was sentenced to jail this week.

Woolford appeared before Judge Gerald Prill in Huron County Circuit Court for a sentencing hearing on Monday. He had pleaded no contest in March to operating a vehicle, causing injury.

The charges stem from a collision on Friday, March 18, at around 10:20 p.m. Police say Woolford was driving northbound on M-53 just north of Kinde when he veered into the southbound lane and hit a vehicle carrying four Port Austin men between the ages 19 and 23. Woolford wasn’t injured and would later be arrested.

The driver of the oncoming vehicle was transported to McLaren Thumb Region for treatment, while his three passengers were transported out of Huron County for treatment of serious injuries, including a significant head injury to one and bone fractures to the rest. There were no fatalities in the wreck.

At this week’s hearing, Woolford’s attorney, Elizabeth Weisenbach, spoke on his behalf.

Weisenbach told the court her client has no criminal record and is constantly asking about the condition of the men he hit.

“His remorse is 10-fold,” she said.

Woolford’s blood alcohol content the night of the collision was measured at 0.13, she noted, adding that since then he has been to counseling and AA almost daily. She told the court he has been employed since 2007, and his girlfriend recently gave birth to twins.

“He is not that night,” Weisenbach told the court. “He is everything else.”

One of the passengers in the vehicle Woolford hit, 23-year-old Carlos R. Solla, who fractured his hip and arm in the crash, issued a statement in the courtroom.

Solla said he hasn’t received a paycheck since the crash, which he said he used to send back to Puerto Rico, where he’s from, to support his two children. However, as a result, he said he might lose his house.

Woolford then addressed the court, apologizing to those he hit and the first responders for “disturbing their night with their family.”

“I clearly failed,” Woolford said. “There is no excuse for my actions.”

Woolford was sentenced to 270 days in jail, with one day credited. Restitution in the case was listed at around $100 but will remain open. He was fined $1,000 and ordered to pay $130 to the Crime Victims Rights fund and $68 in State Minimum Costs. He was also sentenced to two years of probation.