Civil suit against drunk police officer

ST. LOUIS: The parents of four young people from India who died in a wrong-way road accident last month have decided to sue the driver of the other vehicle- Christine Miller, a police officer -- for wrongful death seeking unspecified amount in damages.

The lawsuit  filed  in St. Louis County against 41-year-old Christine Miller says the driver was reported drinking heavily at a bar near the  police station before driving her 2001 Mitsubishi Eclipse eastbound in the westbound lane of Dougherty Ferry Road when she struck a vehicle turning west onto Dougherty Ferry from Des Peres. The collision occurred at about 1:45 a.m. on March 21 killing four passengers- all were students from India in the other car. They died instantly.

The students dead are identified as  Anusha Anumolu, 23, Priya Darshini Muppavarapu, 22, Anitha Lakshmi Veerapaneni, 23, and Satya S. Chinta, 25. Yet another victim Nitesh Adusumilli, 27. is severely injured.

A chemical test of her blood taken at 4:35 a.m. revealed a blood/alcohol content of .169 percent - double the level for what is considered legally drunk, according to the State Highway Patrol.

Miller is accused of criminal negligence, the result of her allegedly driving while intoxicated and causing the deaths of four persons and severely injuring another.

The suit also accuses O'Leary's Restaurant and Bar of serving her alcohol past the point of intoxication and failing to stop her from driving that night.

Miller was charged earlier that killed four people and injured another, with four felony counts of involuntary manslaughter and a single felony count of assault in the second degree.