Suppression proceedings in fatal crash under way
SANDPOINT - A Clark Fork man charged with accidentally killing his friend in a deadly rollover crash last year admitted to Idaho State Police he was drinking liquor on the morning of the crash, but remembered little else.
"All I remember is waking up and just walking," Zachary Bradshaw Palmer told Trooper Terry Ford in a post-crash interview.
Digital audio recordings of Palmer's statements to state police were played in 1st District Court on Monday as part of a defense effort to have them suppressed before the case heads to a Bonner County jury.
Due to time constraints, no oral arguments on the suppression motion were presented. Proceedings on the motion are scheduled to resume on Jan. 26.
Palmer, 20, is charged with vehicular manslaughter in connection with the Oct. 8 crash which claimed the life of Tyler James Pesce, an 18-year-old from Hope. Pesce was a passenger in the Chevrolet Corvette Palmer was driving when he lost control and crashed on River Road southeast of Clark Fork.
Palmer has pleaded not guilty and a trial is planned for early this year. Defense attorney Michael Waldrup, contends in court documents that Palmer was incapable to giving informed consent to waiving his right to remain silent because he was intoxicated, concussed and suffering from post-collision shock.
Three witnesses were called to testify on Monday, including Ford. Sandpoint Police officers Jason Haines and Joshua Van Dyke, both of whom assisted Ford in the crash investigation, also testified.
Haines and Van Dyke reported to Bonner General Hospital on the day of the crash to obtain blood and urine samples from Palmer, who was being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
Idaho State Police said Palmer's blood alcohol content measured at 0.13, which is nearly twice the legal limit to drive. No alcohol was found in Pesce's bloodstream.
Van Dyke and Haines testified overhearing remarks Palmer allegedly made while he was being tended to at BGH. Van Dyke said Palmer made a comment about committing suicide and that "it was all over." Haines told the court he heard Palmer say the accident could have been avoided if he had smoked marijuana instead of drinking and that he had almost made it home.
When Ford was called to the stand, two recordings of his interview with Palmer were played. In the first, Ford can be heard advising Palmer of his right to remain silent, a right which Palmer invoked.
Ford testified that Palmer subsequently changed his mind and agreed to answer his questions, which led to a second recording and an admission that he had taken shots of vodka prior to the crash. Palmer also initially believed another of his friends - not Pesce - was his passenger.
"I didn't know he was in the car," Palmer said, referring to Pesce.
In the recordings, Palmer sounds somber and coherent.
Waldrup's questions on direct examination seemed to center on his client's remarks in relation to the advisement of his various rights. On cross examination, Deputy Prosecutor Roger Hanlon drew out testimony from the Sandpoint officers that Palmer's statements were not in response to questions posed by the officers.