Impairment factored into fatal crashes

SANDPOINT — Intoxication factored into two deadly state highway crashes in Bonner County last August, according to Idaho State Police.

Patricia J. St. Pierre, 46, was killed on Highway 57 north of Priest River on Aug. 21. Mason L. Justin, 36, died after his motorcycle went off U.S. Highway 95 near the Kootenai County line on Aug. 28.

Both victims were over the legal limit to drive, state police reports indicate.

St. Pierre was pulling out of the Falls Inn tavern parking lot on the west side of the highway in order to head northbound. In doing so, she pulled into the path of a southbound Nissan Xterra, the report said.

The driver of the sport utility vehicle, Hrishkesh S. Joshi, steered toward the northbound lane in an unsuccessful attempt to avoid the collision. Joshi’s SUV slammed into the driver’s side of the 1986 Pontiac Firebird St. Pierre was driving, according to the report.

St. Pierre, a Spokane, Wash., resident died at the scene. Front-seat passenger Patricia R. Abbs, a 37-year-old from Priest River, was injured, as was a back-seat passenger, Nicole S. Mecklenberg, 20, of Spokane.

Joshi and his wife, Rupali, both 32-year-old Spokane residents, were also injured. Their 11-month old son was restrained in a child safety seat reportedly suffered possible injuries. A blood draw on St. Pierre indicated an alcohol level of 0.37, nearly five times the legal limit of 0.08, the report said. The crash happened on St. Pierre’s birthday.

A Breathalyzer test on Hrishkesh Joshi detected no alcohol in his system.

St. Pierre’s alcohol impairment and failure to yield were cited as contributing factors in her death.

The crash happened shortly after 5:30 p.m. about seven and a half miles north of Priest River. The collision was on a curve with an unspecified grade.

Justin, an Athol resident, was riding northbound when he crossed U.S. 95’s southbound lanes for an unknown reason. His Harley-Davidson went down an embankment on the west side of the road and struck a metal post with a reflector which delineates the highway’s route.

Justin, who was not wearing a helmet, was ejected and later found dead at the scene.

The crash occurred at 10:30 p.m., on a curve on Granite Hill, about two miles north of Athol. The crash scene apparently went undiscovered for nearly two hours, the report indicates.

The weather was clear and the roadway was dry when the crash happened.

A blood test on Justin put his blood alcohol level at 0.21, almost three times the legal limit. The blood test also detected the presence of marijuana in his system, the report shows.

Impairment, driving left of center and going off the highway are listed as contributing circumstances in Justin’s death.

Five people have been killed this year in state highway crashes in Bonner County. Seven people were killed in fatal collisions in 2009.