CUMMING — A Forsyth County man was killed while mowing his lawn on a riding lawnmower at about 4 p.m. Wednesday.
According to the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, 68-year-old Paul Nix, of Cumming, was using his mower in his front yard near the roadway when officers say a white Ford Fusion, driven by 22-year-old Kenneth Johnson, failed to negotiate the curve and struck the mower.
Nix was pronounced deceased at the scene and Johnson sustained minor injuries.
According to the sheriff’s office, during the on-scene investigation, a cell phone was in the debris on the ground outside of the Fusion and was confirmed to belong to Johnson.
“The text screen was active, and it appeared that Mr. Johnson was replying to a text at the time of the crash. Field sobriety evaluations were also conducted on Mr. Johnson. At the conclusion of the evaluation, it was determined that Mr. Johnson was driving under the influence,” Sheriff’s office spokesperson Stacie Miller said.
Johnson was placed under arrest and charged with Homicide by Vehicle 1st Degree, Driving Under the Influence, Reckless Driving, Too Fast For Conditions, Failure to Maintain Lane and Writing Sending Reading Texts While Driving. He was transported to the Forsyth County Jail and is being held on no bond.
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