Drinking, driving and death: the inevitable trilogy! William Abernathy is alleged to have been under the influence of alcohol when driving a vehicle and crashing it into the vehicle driven by Emerson, Georgia mayor Al Pallone. Pallone and his wife, Camilla, were killed.
The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office said Abernathy, 50 years old, is charged with driving under the influence, vehicular homicide, serious injury by vehicle and reckless driving. As reported by Fox 5 Atlanta, the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office said Abernathy is being held in the Cherokee County Adult Detention Center while he awaits a hearing in connection to a deadly car crash involving Emerson Mayor Al Pallone and his wife, Camilla
Fox 5 reported that officials with the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office informed that the mayor and his wife were driving down Knox Bridge Highway Saturday afternoon when Abernathy’s Chevrolet pickup collided with their Hyundai Santa Fe. The crash involved a total of four cars and all surviving occupants, including Abernathy, were hospitalized after the crash. Pallone and his wife had lived in the Emerson community for about 40 years.
Mayor Pro Tem Vincent Wiley stated the obvious lament, saying: “It’s just tragic…just tragic. They were like family to my family, personally, so it’s [really] hard right now.”
The City of Emerson’s final council meeting of the year is scheduled for this upcoming Monday, Dec. 12. Wiley said it would be the first meeting in decades that Mayor Pallone’s presence would not be felt. Wiley will serve as acting mayor while Emerson city leaders decide what’s next.
