Pedestrian hit by driver allegedly high on opiates on the long road to recovery

BATON ROUGE – A man who was working his last delivery of the day before being hit by a driver allegedly high on opiates has a long road to recovery, according to WKRN. 

Kevin Smith, a car hauler from Tennessee, was working his last delivery when he was struck by Richard Scholtens Mar. 10. The Baton Rouge Police Department said Scholtens had overdosed on opiates, and his vehicle was found less than a mile from the crash site with Scholtens unresponsive inside. 

First responders had to revive him using Narcan before bringing him to a hospital and arresting him. 

Smith was severely injured in the crash, but his doctors say it could have been a lot worse. 

“The nurses and doctors say they can’t explain how it did not do internal bleeding and brain damage,” his wife, Tuesday Smith, told WKRN. 

Smith had a reportedly long list of injuries, including lost teeth, several broken bones, and punctured lungs. He also nearly lost both of his legs. 

“I really think they should march [Scholtens] up here and show what he did with his bad decisions,” Tuesday said.