Suspect identified and warrants issued for major Marble Falls wrecks
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The Marble Falls Police Department has officially issued warrants for, and is working on apprehending, John Paul New, 46, of Leander for his alleged involvement in multiple major motor vehicle accidents on Nov. 19 in Marble Falls.
New is the primary suspect in a spree of collisions on U.S. 281 that put him in the hospital along with a three-year-old child that was in another vehicle damaged in the incident. He was officially charged on Monday, Dec. 1, with four counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, each being a second-degree felony that comes with two to 20 years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines.
Law enforcement had not yet arrested New as of Tuesday, Dec. 2.
The MFPD is also looking at a driving while intoxicated charge pending the results of a blood test, but that specific charge had not yet been filed as of Tuesday.
On Nov. 19, New allegedly fled from the scene of a hit-and-run accident near the intersection of Max Starcke Dam Road and U.S. 281.
He is then said to have driven through the La Ventana neighborhood, hitting a stop sign and a light pole, before emerging on to U.S. 281 in south Marble Falls. Once he was on U.S. 281, his 2016 Dodge Ram 2500 collided with a Dodge Journey driven by Burnet resident Brittany Ashlock and her three-year-old daughter.
After that initial collision, a silver Lexus then hit New’s Dodge Ram. New then reportedly attempted to reverse out of the situation, striking a 2017 Ford F-250.
In the aftermath of the collisions, U.S. 281 was shut down to allow for the landing of two helicopters to transport New and Ashlock’s three-year-old daughter to hospitals in Austin.
New was reportedly in stable condition after the wrecks and the three-year-old had to be treated for a major laceration to her forehead.