Will Jake still be laughing on November 1st?

From KSL

DUCHESNE — 2013-08-15— A jury trial has been scheduled for a Fort Duchesne man charged with DUI and texting and driving in connection with a January crash that nearly killed a Roosevelt woman.

Jake Antonio Arrats entered pleas of not guilty Thursday in 8th District Court to charges of DUI, a third-degree felony, texting while driving, a class B misdemeanor, and four other misdemeanor traffic offenses. After accepting Arrats’ pleas, Judge Douglas Thomas set a Nov. 1 trial date.

Roosevelt police say Keri Houston, 19, was sitting in a parked car Jan. 28 when she was sideswiped by Arrats. Houston’s door was open and her left foot was planted on the ground outside when the crash happened, causing a near-complete amputation of her leg in two places.

Arrats was driving under the influence and replying to a text message with the word “Haha” at the time, investigators said.

Doctors believe it was the quick thinking of good Samaritans — one of whom used his belt as a makeshift tourniquet — that saved Houston’s life.

After court Thursday, Jeff Houston said his daughter has undergone 11 surgeries, including one where doctors took 18 inches of muscle and tissue from her back …MORE