DeSoto Parish – On November 4, 2020, just before 1:00 p.m., Louisiana State Police Troop G responded to a two-vehicle, fatal crash on Louisiana Highway 175 south of Louisiana Highway 522. This crash killed 45-year-old Joseph Free of Pleasant Hill and 63-year-old Donnie Rogers of Magnolia, Arkansas.   

 

The initial investigation revealed a 2020 Peterbilt loaded log truck, driven by Free, was traveling southbound on Louisiana Highway 175. For reasons still under investigation, Free’s vehicle crossed the centerline and struck a northbound commercial motor vehicle, driven by Rogers. Upon impact, both vehicles became engulfed in flames.

 

Free and Rogers, whose restraint use is unknown, sustained fatal injuries in the crash and were pronounced dead. Toxicology samples were obtained and submitted for analysis. This crash remains under investigation.

 

In 2020, Troop G has investigated 24 fatal crashes resulting in 29 deaths.