Man found dead in car
DALLAS — A 43-year-old man was found dead Monday morning inside an overturned vehicle on the southern outskirts of Dallas, police said.
About 10 a.m., a city of Dallas employee driving on Interstate 20 spotted the vehicle below in a flat area near some river levees.
“It looks like the car went airborne and landed on its top and has been there for some time,” said Dallas police Lt. Scott Bratcher, who oversees the department’s traffic accident investigators.
David Johnson was found in the vehicle in the 6700 block of J.J. Lemmon Road, near Interstate 20.
Distraught family members arrived at the scene Monday afternoon. They said Johnson had been missing since 6 p.m. Sunday. His wife of 20 years, Minzola Johnson, had been trying to reach him by phone.
"He loved his family very much, and that's all I have to say," she said.
Byron Hopkins, the victim's cousin, said Johnson was a truck driver and had lots of friends.
"He's got friends all over," he said. "Everybody is in shock right now."
Authorities said preliminary investigations have found that Johnson was likely driving at a high rate of speed while heading northbound on J.J. Lemmon Road, which is where it appears he lost control of his 1996 Mustang. Only one block from his home, the car then sped off the road and down an embankment, flipping over and landing on its top.
Authorities were in the process of retrieving the vehicle and the victim's body at 12:30 p.m. The medical examiner will perform an autopsy for the cause of Johnson's death.
Cynthia Johnson, the victim's big sister, finds it hard to say goodbye. "It was just two of us," she said. "I know that he's in good hands, because he loved the Lord."
Cynthia Johnson said she and her brother had buried their mother not long ago.
The crash leaves behind three children now left wondering why their father — who is a truck driver — lost control on a road he knew so well. He was just one block from home and in good health.
Dallas Police say they treated the case as a crime scene, but believe it is a one-vehicle accident.
They must await results from the medical examiner to determine the exact cause of death.
E-mail: ddenmon@wfaa.com
