Bertram man dies after being pinned between pickup truck and house

FROM STAFF REPORTS

BERTRAM — A 26-year-old man died Feb. 10 after accidentally getting pinned between his pickup truck and his house, authorities said.

The incident happened at about 10:15 p.m. after Justin Dewight Battles pulled into the driveway of his residence in the 600 block of CR 243 East in Burnet County.

“He came home. Looks like he got out of his truck in his driveway, trying to move the trash dumpster,” Bertram Police Chief J.J. Wilson said.

The victim was driving a four-wheel-drive pickup truck with a standard transmission.

“He got out. It looks like maybe (the truck) got knocked out of gear or (he) left it out of gear,” Wilson said. “He tried to jump back in and then the vehicle continued forward (hit the porch post first) and pinned him between his house and the truck.”

Battles was pronounced dead at the scene by Burnet County Precinct 2 Justice of the Peace Lisa Whitehead.

“There’s evidence to show he tried to get (the vehicle) back into gear,” Wilson said. “There’s no signs of foul play.”

The victims’s body was taken to the Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.

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