Police: Cranston Man Had .157 BAC, Pot in System following Fatal Crash

According to police, Cranston’s Zachary Kahan, 23, had a blood alcohol level of .157 and marijuana in his system following a fatal drunken driving accident in September.

Kahan, of 39 Lantern Lane, Cranston, was arraigned in Washington County Superior Court on Tuesday in front of Superior Court Associate Justice Brian Stern. Kahan was charged with two felonies – drunken driving with death resulting and driving to endanger with death resulting.

He was released on $10,000 bail with surety and given permission to leave the state for work and family events, on the conditions that he start substance abuse counseling and use an interlock device on his car.

Expanded reports from South Kingstown police from the accident in early September and toxicology from the state medical examiner’s office were included in court files.

The crash on Moonstone Beach Road shortly after 10 p.m. took the life of Tonya Chabot, 24, of Burrillville. Chabot is believed to have died from a severe injury to the chest from the crash.

According to the medical examiner’s office, blood drawn from Kahan at about 12:25 a.m. the night of the crash tested positive for marijuana and a blood alcohol level of .157. The legal limit in Rhode Island is .08.

According to police reports, Kahan was at a wedding earlier that night, and other guests who talked to police at the accident scene said he was drunk and belligerent. For a previous article with these accounts, click here.

Kahan is due in court on Jan. 14 for a pretrial conference.