Suspect in Fatal DUI Appears in Court

The man charged with DUI after a fiery crash earlier this summer that left a Liberty man dead appeared in court Friday, according to The Independent Mail.

James Johnson, 45, of Liberty was charged with felony driving under the influence resulting in death after 

Johnson's attorneys are arguing that statements their client made soon after the collision are untrustworthy, as Johnson has a medical condition, the Independent Mail reports.

Authorities say Johnson was behind the wheel of a vehicle that struck a DirecTV van head on.

The driver of the van, Peter Kuzbyt, 56, of Liberty was killed in the crash, according to Anderson County Greg Shore.

An intense fire started after the crash, but Kuzbyt was already dead of blunt force trauma when the fire started, Shore said.

Due to the fire, it took some time to identify Kuzbyt as the deceased, he said.

Shore said he went to DirecTV's Piedmont location, where a motorcycle registered to Kuzbyt was the only vehicle still in the parking lot.

After running the tags on the motorcycle, Shore then located Kuzbyt's family.

Johnson was severely burned in the accident.