LA MARQUE – Tuesday saw the delivery of an indictment against a man who is accused of killing another in a drunk driving accident. After being charged on Tuesday with manslaughter in connection with a collision that claimed the life of Michael Burge, 21, of Dickinson, Rayfield Conley, 20, of League City, surrendered to authorities at the Galveston County Jail. Prior to Tuesday’s additional indictment, Conley was facing charges of driving while intoxicated and causing death in March. At the time, he was free on $100,000 bonds, according to the police.
According to an affidavit by Sgt. Troy Anders of the La Marque Police Department, Conley was operating a black Toyota Corolla at 1:45 a.m. on December 21, 2021, in the 4000 block of Highway 3 in La Marque when he drove the wrong way into oncoming traffic and collided head-on with a black Nissan Xterra being operated by Burge.
Burge was discovered to be unresponsive and unconscious. According to the complaint, he was transported by Life Flight to the University of Texas Medical Branch hospital in Galveston, where he passed away around 7:45 a.m. According to the complaint, Conley was also taken to a hospital with fractured legs and facial injuries.
Conley allegedly acknowledged being drunk to the police. His blood alcohol level was 0.112 at the time of the collision, according to a subsequent blood examination. The affidavit states that Conley was moving at 77 mph while in a 45 mph zone based on information from the car’s black box. On $50,000 in bonds, Conley is being held in the Galveston County Jail.
