Topline: A Tennessee man died 18 days after an Alabama River boat crash that investigators say happened at high speed, in the dark, and with no navigation lights.
Published: April 17, 2026 1:00 pm ET
Shawn Fletcher
Committed to the craft of journalism and am driven by my desire to inform and inspire.
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William Alexander Marks Acreman
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — A Wetumpka man has been charged with reckless murder after investigators said he was driving an aluminum bass boat at night, without proper navigation lights, at a high rate of speed and under the influence of alcohol and other controlled substances when it crashed on the Alabama River, leaving one of his friends dead and another passenger injured.
AL.com reported that William Alexander Marks Acreman, 30, is charged in the March 24, 2026, death of 30-year-old Johnathan Barringer of Nashville and also faces a first-degree assault charge for injuries suffered by another passenger.
According to court records, Acreman, Barringer and 29-year-old Devon O’Donnell met in the parking lot of Fort Toulouse Boat Launch about 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 7, and prepared the vessel for launch. At 5:30 p.m., they arrived at Capital Oyster Bar for food and alcoholic beverages, then left. Surveillance video from about 6:45 p.m. showed the 19-foot War Eagle vessel entering the Alabama River with no navigation lights, investigators said.
Witnesses told investigators they saw the boat veer toward the east shoreline and assumed it was entering a creek or slough. Instead, authorities said, the vessel crashed at about 6:50 p.m. on the east shoreline about 1.3 miles north of Northern Boulevard.
O’Donnell was ejected from the boat and Barringer was partially ejected, according to investigators. Acreman was thrown into the center console, and the impact was strong enough to rip the console from the deck and break about 10 bolts from the hull, charging documents state.
Several people passing by heard pleas for help and navigated to the wreck within minutes, investigators wrote. Witnesses said that when they told Acreman they were calling authorities, he began emptying alcoholic beverages from his cooler onto the riverbank and into the water.
Barringer, Acreman and O’Donnell were taken to Baptist Medical Center South in Montgomery. Barringer died March 24, 18 days after the crash. Alabama Law Enforcement Agency state troopers, the Marine Patrol Division and the Montgomery Fire Department responded.
Acreman was booked into the Montgomery County Detention Facility on Wednesday with bonds totaling $90,000.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
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A Tennessee man died 18 days after an Alabama River boat crash that investigators say happened at high speed, in the dark, and with no navigation lights.
By Shawn Fletcher
Published: April 17, 2026 1:00 pm ET
William Alexander Marks Acreman
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — A Wetumpka man has been charged with reckless murder after investigators said he was driving an aluminum bass boat at night, without proper navigation lights, at a high rate of speed and under the influence of alcohol and other controlled substances when it crashed on the Alabama River, leaving one of his friends dead and another passenger injured.
AL.com reported that William Alexander Marks Acreman, 30, is charged in the March 24, 2026, death of 30-year-old Johnathan Barringer of Nashville and also faces a first-degree assault charge for injuries suffered by another passenger.
According to court records, Acreman, Barringer and 29-year-old Devon O’Donnell met in the parking lot of Fort Toulouse Boat Launch about 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 7, and prepared the vessel for launch. At 5:30 p.m., they arrived at Capital Oyster Bar for food and alcoholic beverages, then left. Surveillance video from about 6:45 p.m. showed the 19-foot War Eagle vessel entering the Alabama River with no navigation lights, investigators said.
Witnesses told investigators they saw the boat veer toward the east shoreline and assumed it was entering a creek or slough. Instead, authorities said, the vessel crashed at about 6:50 p.m. on the east shoreline about 1.3 miles north of Northern Boulevard.
O’Donnell was ejected from the boat and Barringer was partially ejected, according to investigators. Acreman was thrown into the center console, and the impact was strong enough to rip the console from the deck and break about 10 bolts from the hull, charging documents state.
Several people passing by heard pleas for help and navigated to the wreck within minutes, investigators wrote. Witnesses said that when they told Acreman they were calling authorities, he began emptying alcoholic beverages from his cooler onto the riverbank and into the water.
Barringer, Acreman and O’Donnell were taken to Baptist Medical Center South in Montgomery. Barringer died March 24, 18 days after the crash. Alabama Law Enforcement Agency state troopers, the Marine Patrol Division and the Montgomery Fire Department responded.
Acreman was booked into the Montgomery County Detention Facility on Wednesday with bonds totaling $90,000.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
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Man Charged With Reckless Murder in Alabama River DUI Boat Crash That Killed Friend
A Tennessee man died 18 days after an Alabama River boat crash that investigators say happened at high speed, in the dark, and with no navigation lights.
By Shawn Fletcher
Published: April 17, 2026 1:00 pm ET
William Alexander Marks Acreman
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — A Wetumpka man has been charged with reckless murder after investigators said he was driving an aluminum bass boat at night, without proper navigation lights, at a high rate of speed and under the influence of alcohol and other controlled substances when it crashed on the Alabama River, leaving one of his friends dead and another passenger injured.
AL.com reported that William Alexander Marks Acreman, 30, is charged in the March 24, 2026, death of 30-year-old Johnathan Barringer of Nashville and also faces a first-degree assault charge for injuries suffered by another passenger.
According to court records, Acreman, Barringer and 29-year-old Devon O’Donnell met in the parking lot of Fort Toulouse Boat Launch about 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 7, and prepared the vessel for launch. At 5:30 p.m., they arrived at Capital Oyster Bar for food and alcoholic beverages, then left. Surveillance video from about 6:45 p.m. showed the 19-foot War Eagle vessel entering the Alabama River with no navigation lights, investigators said.
Witnesses told investigators they saw the boat veer toward the east shoreline and assumed it was entering a creek or slough. Instead, authorities said, the vessel crashed at about 6:50 p.m. on the east shoreline about 1.3 miles north of Northern Boulevard.
O’Donnell was ejected from the boat and Barringer was partially ejected, according to investigators. Acreman was thrown into the center console, and the impact was strong enough to rip the console from the deck and break about 10 bolts from the hull, charging documents state.
Several people passing by heard pleas for help and navigated to the wreck within minutes, investigators wrote. Witnesses said that when they told Acreman they were calling authorities, he began emptying alcoholic beverages from his cooler onto the riverbank and into the water.
Barringer, Acreman and O’Donnell were taken to Baptist Medical Center South in Montgomery. Barringer died March 24, 18 days after the crash. Alabama Law Enforcement Agency state troopers, the Marine Patrol Division and the Montgomery Fire Department responded.
Acreman was booked into the Montgomery County Detention Facility on Wednesday with bonds totaling $90,000.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
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