![A wreath placed by Richard Sanders, 24, of Bangor rests at the corner of 40 High Street on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2009 in memory of his friend, James Blakeman, 23, who crashed a Cadillac into the building killing himself and critically injuring his passenger, Stephen Bowers. "He was an all around good kid who made a bad decision yesterday," said Sanders of his friend Blakeman. (Bangor Daily News/Bridget Brown)](http://bdnpull.bangorpublishing.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/1258070062_37da.jpg "A wreath placed by Richard Sanders, 24, of Bangor rests at the corner of 40 High Street on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2009 in memory of his friend, James Blakeman, 23, who crashed a Cadillac into the building killing himself and critically injuring his passenger, Stephen Bowers. "He was an all around good kid who made a bad decision yesterday,\" said Sanders of his friend Blakeman. (Bangor Daily News/Bridget Brown)")
![Richard Sanders, 24, of Bangor pauses at the corner of 40 High Street on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2009 where he placed a wreath in memory of his friend, James Blakeman, 23, who crashed a Cadillac into the building killing himself and critically injuring his passenger, Stephen Bowers. "He was an all around good kid who made a bad decision yesterday," said Sanders of his friend Blakeman. (Bangor Daily News/Bridget Brown)](http://bdnpull.bangorpublishing.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/1258070066_ca02.jpg "Richard Sanders, 24, of Bangor pauses at the corner of 40 High Street on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2009 where he placed a wreath in memory of his friend, James Blakeman, 23, who crashed a Cadillac into the building killing himself and critically injuring his passenger, Stephen Bowers. "He was an all around good kid who made a bad decision yesterday,\" said Sanders of his friend Blakeman. (Bangor Daily News/Bridget Brown)")
BANGOR, Maine — A passenger involved in a high-speed accident on Wednesday that killed another man remains in critical condition at a local hospital.
Stephen Bowers, 24, of Bangor, suffered life-threatening injuries during an afternoon crash on High Street between Hammond Street and Union Street in downtown Bangor. Bowers was a passenger in a Cadillac driven by James Blakeman, 23, who died at the scene.
According to police, Blakeman had a history of traffic violations. He apparently was driving at a high rate of speed on Ohio Street when he ran a red light at Hammond Street around 2 p.m. Wednesday. The vehicle continued through the intersection onto High Street, across from Ohio, but Blakeman failed to negotiate a sharp curve in the road and crashed the car into a building.
Significant damage was apparent to the front of the historic building at 40 High St., which houses a mix of apartments and businesses. Debris from the vehicle’s wreckage remained behind Thursday afternoon when Richard Sanders, 24, a friend of Blakeman’s, placed a wreath at the accident scene.
“He was a good kid, a hard worker,” Sanders said of Blakeman. He didn’t know Bowers.
Bangor police said Blakeman’s body would be tested for alcohol or drug use, which is standard protocol for any fatal accident. Blakeman had a lengthy driving record, including violations for speeding, operating an unregistered vehicle and operating while under suspension. It appears that neither man was wearing a seat belt.
Police are asking anyone with information about the accident or the victims involved to call Detective Dave Bushey of the Criminal Investigations Division at 947-7382.
990-8167
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