Raleigh police: Driver was going 80 mph before plowing into Five Points businesses
Police estimate that a driver was going 80 mph on Glenwood Avenue near Five Points when he lost control, hit a utility pole and crashed into three businesses on Sunday evening.
Deonte Leroy Ellis of Raleigh was driving inbound on Glenwood shortly before 6 p.m. when the crash occurred, according to a police accident report released Thursday. His 2010 Infiniti hit a power pole in the median hard enough to knock it down, then veered off the right side of the road, according to the report.
The car plowed through the outdoor seating areas for Lilly’s Pizza and The Third Place coffeehouse before coming to rest in the front window of Leslie Jandrain’s art gallery. The gallery and restaurants were closed, and the seating areas, often full of people, were empty.
Ellis was not injured.
The speed limit on that stretch of Glenwood is 35 mph. Police charged Ellis with speeding, careless and reckless driving, making an unsafe movement and failure to reduce speed.
Residents and business owners have long complained about drivers speeding through the Five Points intersection. Last month, the City Council approved money for a study that will look at ways to improve safety and aesthetics along Glenwood in Five Points.
The study, which gets underway this fall and should take six to eight months to complete, will evaluate the consequences of turning the six-way intersection into a roundabout. Any significant changes on Glenwood would need the cooperation of the N.C. Department of Transportation, which owns and manages the street.
This story was originally published July 8, 2021 at 1:04 PM.
