RICHLAND, Wash. — An off-duty Washington State Patrol trooper has been charged with vehicular homicide six months after she allegedly hit and killed a motorcyclist while supposedly driving under the influence.
On March 1, Sarah Clasen, 35, was driving her SUV around 7:39 p.m. on SR 240 in Richland when she tried to make a left-hand turn onto Village Parkway.
When she made that turn, she hit a motorcycle that was driving in the oncoming lane. Clasen later told officers that she felt the impact of the crash, but said the motorcyclist came out of nowhere.
Docs: WSP trooper’s blood-alcohol level was 0.17% 6 hours after fatal crash
The motorcyclist, 20-year-old Jhoser Sanchez, died at Kadlec Regional Medical Center.
She also told officers that she only saw one headlight coming toward her, thinking that a vehicle had one of the headlights out. According to court documents, Clasen said she thought she had time to make the turn, and that it was mostly completed at the time of the crash.
However, an investigating officer said, “the damage to Sarah’s SUV was concentrated on the front passenger corner, which meant that she would have just begun to turn at the time of impact,” according to court documents.
The officer also believes she would have had a clear view of oncoming traffic prior to the collision, court documents said.
An officer said he could smell what he believed was “an odor of intoxicants coming from her person” when he spoke to her at the scene.
Clasen did not wish to take a voluntary field sobriety test, nor a preliminary breath test, according to court documents.
The WSP Seattle Toxicology Laboratory found that Clasen’s blood-alcohol level was 0.17%, nearly six hours after the crash—more than double the legal limit of 0.08%.
Charges were officially filed for vehicular homicide in Spokane County, as Benton County believed there would be a conflict of interest if she were tried in the county where she worked.
A summons was issued setting an arraignment date, and the court will address, what, if any, the conditions of release.
The Spokane County Prosecutor’s Office could not confirm why charges were filed six months after the arrest.
It’s unclear if any additional charges will be filed.
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