South Arkansas car accidents prove fatal for 2

MALVERN — A juvenile driver reportedly fleeing from law enforcement died early Saturday morning in a crash during the pursuit.

According to a preliminary fatal crash summary posted by Arkansas State Police, the young driver, whose age and gender is not listed in the report, was fleeing from Rockport police on Interstate 30 when, in order to pass another vehicle, he/she left the right shoulder of the highway near the 102 eastbound mile-marker, then re-entered and crossed over the highway. The 2018 Nissan Maxima exited the highway on the left shoulder and struck a tree head on.

The driver perished in the collision. The body was taken to the Hot Spring County Coroner’s Office. Weather was clear and the road was dry at the time of the incident, which was recorded as 1:16 a.m. on June 27, 2026.

State Trooper John Crow investigated the incident.

Another crash in the Malvern vicinity, just two hours prior, claimed a life on US Highway 270 near the 9 mile-marker in Hot Springs. According to a report, 43-year-old Dustin Kenneth Wallace, of Malvern, was eastbound in a 2004 Nissan, driving in the inside lane, when he crossed into the outside lane and struck the rear of an eastbound 2019 Ford F-150.

Wallace’s vehicle left the roadway, traveled down an embankment and struck a tree. He died at the scene. His body was taken to the Garland County Coroner’s Office.

Roads and weather were dry and clear at the time of the crash, at 11:26 p.m. on June 26. Officer Shawn Lowrey of the Hot Springs Police Department investigated the collision.

Editor’s Note: Preliminary Arkansas State Police fatality reports sometimes contain information that turns out to be inaccurate. Typical errors include spelling errors in names, or incorrect ages; outdated hometown information; vehicle direction of travel; and incident times. The ASP sometimes corrects these errors in updated reports. ASP reports omit names of passengers or drivers who are not injured, even in instances when uninjured drivers may appear to be at fault. The reports also omit names of juveniles who were injured or killed, although we report those names when obtained through other sources.