A husband, wife and their 11-month-old daughter were killed in a three-vehicle crash on Interstate 30 in Arlington early Wednesday.
Benjamon Stewart, 41, is charged with three counts of intoxication manslaughter and one count of failing to render aid.
The crash happened at about 2:20 a.m. in the eastbound lanes of I-30 near the Fielder Road exit when Stewart rear-ended another car, according to police.
Family members identified the victims as Najib Intidam, of Arlington; his wife, Hanane; and their daughter, Nour el Houda.
The crash disabled the Intidams' car in the center lane and knocked out their taillights, Arlington police spokesman Sgt. Christopher Cook said. A second truck hit the Intidams as they were trying to exit their vehicle.
Emergency crews pulled the infant from the vehicle, but at least one of her parents had to be cut out of the wreckage, police said.
Najib Intidam died at the scene of the crash. Hanane and Nour el Houda were rushed to Arlington Memorial Hospital, where they later died.
Relatives of the Intidams told NBC 5 that the family had been at their mosque praying late at night in observance of Ramadan. The family had made a stop at a store and were returning to their Arlington home at the time of the crash, they said.
Hanane Intidam had moved to United States within the last two months from her native Morocco, relatives said. Her husband had lived in Texas since 2005 and worked as a mechanic.
Their daughter would have had her first birthday early next month.
"Everything was new, and [he was] excited about everything," Amir Belkhoumani, 14, said about his uncle, whom he considered to be his closest relative. "He was excited for his new life. But I guess it was his time to go."
Police said Stewart tried to drive his vehicle away from the crash scene but it was too disabled, police said. Investigators said Stewart pulled over onto the shoulder, ran away and hid in a wooded area along the freeway. Fire crews that responded to the crash used a thermal-imaging camera to find Stewart's heat signature so police could arrest him.
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According to court records, Stewart pleaded no contest to DWI in Arlington in 2002.
The prior case hits the victims' family very hard.
"He didn't learn his lesson. That's what I'm saying -- he obviously didn't get penalized bad enough," Belkhoumani said. "But that's what I think. DWI has always been a thing that's on TV, commercials, and I never thought it was going to happen to our family."
