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MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) – A judge set bail for a Wilmer teen at $50,000 on Wednesday accused of causing a fatal accident last month, as the family of the deceased University of South Alabama student engaged in civil lawsuits.

The defendant is 17 and charged as an adult with manslaughter, but Alabama law prohibits identifying him because of his age.

Mobile County Assistant District Attorney Maggie Browning asked for a high bond, pointing to what she described as disturbing details of last week’s incident. She said the defendant was traveling at 187km/h in the 90km/h zone for five seconds before the collision and at 136km/h when the cars collided on Lott Road on November 23 .

Additionally, Browning added, the suspect’s prior driving history includes both tickets and accidents.

“There is a pattern of him driving extremely recklessly,” she said.

Defense attorney Jason Darley argued for a lower bond. He said his client is a high school student who plans to complete his senior year remotely. He said the teen is participating in an industrial scholarship program and will have a job after graduation.

“He is not a flight risk,” he told Mobile County District Judge Spiro Cheriogotis. “And (his family will) not allow him to drive, no matter what the court orders.

An Alabama Law Enforcement Agency report states the 17-year-old was under the influence of alcohol when he crossed the center line on Lott Road between Willow Trace Drive and Eagle Ridge Drive near JE Turner Elementary School.

The head-on collision with an oncoming Ford Focus caused the vehicle to spin clockwise and crash into a fence, according to the investigator’s written account. The driver of that car, 19-year-old Nolan McDavid, succumbed to his injuries. According to the report, the suspect’s Chevrolet Impala left the road and rolled over.

Browning said there were witnesses and video footage from nearby homes.

Outside the courtroom, Darley said he could not comment on the circumstances of the accident because it was too early in the case.

“This case is still in its infancy,” he says. “I only started working on it yesterday. We haven’t seen any reports. This was a bond hearing this morning; it is all it was.”

Darley said it is an extremely difficult case emotionally.

“Boldly stated facts,” he said. “I mean, two good families. And one has died and one is in jail.”

McDavid’s family declined to comment after Wednesday’s hearing. The family’s attorney, Staples Wood, issued a written statement praising ALEA.

“Nolan’s mother, Mrs. Randi Jones, and the rest of his family are understandably heartbroken by this tragedy,” the statement read. “Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.”

Cheriogotis set a preliminary hearing for February 12. Darley said he plans to hire a retired state trooper to conduct an independent analysis of the accident reconstruction.

“Anytime we’re ordered to do an independent investigation, we just have to make sure that we know it was done on one side, and that includes ours,” he told FOX10 News. “And sometimes you get confirmed information, and sometimes you get drastically different information.”

Cheriogotis has denied a request by the prosecution to require that a portion of the $50,000 bond be posted in cash. However, he ordered the suspect to remain under house arrest except to work, go to school, consult his lawyer, attend church services or go to the doctor. He also banned him from driving or having any contact with McDavid’s family.

“I have seen many cases involving tragedy,” the judge said. “This one definitely falls into that category.”

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