KALAMAZOO, MI – A man accused of driving while intoxicated and killing a Western Michigan University student is heading toward a jury trial.

Hunter Hudgins, 20, of Tecumseh, is charged with one felony count of operating under influence or while impaired by liquor causing death and one misdemeanor count each moving violation causing death and person under 21 with a blood alcohol content of .02 to .07%.

Kalamazoo County District Judge Tiffany Ankley found there was probable cause Hudgins was operating a vehicle while impaired by alcohol causing death and bound his case over to circuit court. The misdemeanor charges were also bound over.

Ankley’s decision came after about an hour and a half of testimony from three witnesses Friday, June 3 during a preliminary examination.

Hudgins, then 19, is accused of hitting and killing Bailey Broderick, 19, on Fraternity Village Drive on Nov. 3.

Related: Man accused of hitting, killing WMU student was driving about 20 mph over limit, records show

“I do believe that the People have established proximate cause for today’s purposes,” Ankley said. “I think there’s going to be an uphill battle on the … more strict burden of proof when it comes to the ultimate trier of fact in this case, but that’s not for me here to decide today.”

Broderick’s parents, Colleen and Craig Broderick, had been advocating and waiting months for charges to be filed in the case. The charges, including the felony count, was issued by prosecutors in April.

Broderick could make anyone smile and laugh, even on their worst day, her parents have said.

“She was sunshine and amazing,” Colleen Broderick said previously.

Hudgins told police he was pledging a fraternity and driving people back and forth to the WMU football stadium, Kalamazoo Public Safety Officer Sydney Garner testified. He also said he had drank one Monaco about three or four hours before, Garner said.

A Monaco is a canned cocktail that has 9% alcohol, according to the company’s website.

Garner interviewed Hudgins after the crash and had him perform field sobriety tests. She said she could smell alcohol on his breath and his eyes were bloodshot and glassy.

Hudgins had been crying, which could explain the bloodshot, glassy eyes, defense attorney Justin Workman said.

Hudgins had a blood alcohol content of .048% when he had a blood test at 11:23 p.m., about three hours after the crash, Sydney said.

The collision caused numerous injuries to Broderick, Kalamazoo County Deputy Medical Examiner Dr. Amanda Fisher-Hubbard testified. Broderick’s neck was broken, she had a brain bleed, bruises and scrapes and other internal injuries, Fisher-Hubbard said.

Related: ‘Nothing’s going to bring our girl back,’ parents say after warrant issued for suspected drunk driver

Using surveillance video of the crash and a lack of skid marks, KDPS crime lab specialist Gary Latham testified that he determined that Hudgins was driving between 41 and 48 mph at the time of the crash. The speed limit along the road is 25 mph.

Broderick was crossing the road after exiting a car that was parked the wrong way, Latham said other KDPS officers told him.

She was not in a crosswalk, so Hudgins didn’t have the expectation of a pedestrian crossing the road there, Latham said. However, any driver in the area should have been extra alert because of increased activity in and around WMU’s campus for the football game, he said.

Other factors in the crash include a lack of street lighting, speed, alcohol and the fraction of a second that it takes a driver’s eyes to recover from seeing oncoming headlights, Latham testified.

Hudgins is out of jail on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond. Hearings in Kalamazoo County Circuit Court will be scheduled at a later date.

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