Man accused of DUI after SUV hits courthouse

BENTON -- Franklin County authorities say a man was drunk when his sport utility vehicle slammed into the county courthouse in Benton.

Twenty-eight-year-old Brandon Mandrell is charged with driving under the influence, not wearing a seat belt, driving too fast for conditions and illegally transporting alcohol.

Sheriff's investigators say Mandrell was driving Tuesday afternoon when he hit a concrete base and a tree before the SUV ultimately came to rest upside down and propped against the building.

The force of the vehicle hitting the concrete barrier shot chunks of concrete, rock and mud through the circuit clerk's window.

Mandrell was treated at a hospital. No bystanders were injured.