Engre Louise Brown of Sequim had a warrant out for her arrest, was driving with a revoked license and had repeatedly been cited for driving violations when she drove into oncoming traffic on U.S. Highway 101 last week, hitting a car driven by Benjamin Michael Merscher, also of Sequim, and killing him.
The State Patrol believes Brown, 27, was intoxicated when she crossed the center line at about 1 a.m. Oct. 7 and hit Merscher, 25.
Brown who remained in stable condition at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle on Tuesday, will be booked in Clallam County jail after she is discharged from the hospital, said Trooper Krista Hedstrom, State Patrol spokeswoman.
Hedstrom said that the State Patrol likely will recommend that she be charged with vehicular homicide and driving under the influence of alcohol.
The wreck was at about 1 a.m. west of Kitchen-Dick Road and blocked both lanes of traffic until 7:22 a.m.
Brown was driving westbound in a 2001 Volkswagen Golf when she hit Merscher, who was traveling east in a 1998 Honda Civic.
He was pronounced dead at the scene of the wreck.
Brown was airlifted to Harborview from Olympic Medical Center for treatment of a broken leg and internal injuries.
The outstanding warrant against Brown was issued in August for failure to appear for a hearing on charges of driving under the influence of a controlled substance and driving with a suspended license on June 12, 2006.
Driving record
Brown already had a substantial driving record, according to Clallam County District Court records.
Court records show she had been found guilty of:
âñ First degree negligent driving on Oct. 23, 2000, in Port Angeles.
She was fined $1,000.
âñ Driving without insurance and reckless driving on Aug. 22, 2005, in Forks.
Brown was sentenced to two days in jail with 24 months probation. She was fined $2,190.
Brown admitted to violating probation on Nov. 16, 2006, and was given 40 hours of community service in Sequim.
After failing to conduct any community service in December, and forging her supervisor’s signature, Brown was sentenced to an additional 25 days in jail.
During that case, Brown failed to appear for her probation hearings three times, and had just as many warrants issued for her arrest for the violations.
âñ A traffic infraction cited by the State Patrol on Sept. 13, 2005.
She was fined $153.
âñ Driving without insurance, cited by the Clallam County Sheriff’s Department on Sept. 16, 2005.
She was fined $590.
âñ Driving with a suspended driver’s license on Oct. 24, 2005, cited by the State Patrol.
She received a sentence of five days in Clallam County jail and was fined $1,000.
Brown had failed to appear for a hearing on the citation on Nov. 30, 2005, and had a warrant issued for her arrest.
âñ Driving with a suspended driver’s license and without insurance on June 1, 2006, cited by the State Patrol.
Brown was sentenced to 10 days in jail, 80 hours of community service, and fined $681.
Brown had failed to appear for a hearing in connection with the case on Sept. 13, 2007, and had a warrant issued for her arrest.
Barred from driving
Her suspended license status was increased from second degree to first degree in August for the repeated violations. Both statuses bar Brown from getting her license again.
Clallam County Undersheriff Ron Peregrin said an individual reaches second-degree status upon violation of probation.
Peregrin said all law enforcement officers can do to those who drive with a suspended license is to cite them, and remove them from the road — when they catch them.
“They are frustrating,” Peregrin said, referring to repeat offenders.
“They absolutely refuse to accept any personal responsibility for their actions.
“Eventually it all comes home to roost.”
If an officer knows that someone has a suspended license, and can identify the vehicle, the officer doesn’t need to see a traffic violation to pull the person over, Peregrin said.
Officers also will put a repeated offender under more scrutiny, he added.
“All we can do is try to hold the line,” Peregrin said.
Memorial service
A memorial service for Merscher was held on Sunday at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Sequim, and was attended by more than 400 people, said Casey Merscher, Benjamin Merscher’s 21-year-old brother.
Benjamin Merscher graduated from the University of Oregon with a bachelor’s degree in business administration in June 2007, and was considering pursuing a master’s degree, his brother said.
Benjamin Merscher was working for Costco Wholesale in Sequim.
“We want people to know it was a senseless death, not just sudden, but senseless,” Casey Merscher said.
Clallam County Prosecuting Attorney Deb Kelly said she can’t consider charges against Brown until she receives an investigation report from State Patrol.
The investigation is continuing, the State Patrol said.
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
