EVERETT — A Lake Stevens woman heard the noise and then saw a man walking away from an alleged drunken driving crash that left four people dead.
Matthew McDonald told the woman he’d walk back to the scene, but she insisted on driving him, Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Tobin Darrow wrote. There McDonald, 27, was arrested.
A Washington State Patrol trooper noted that the Snohomish man’s eyes were bloodshot and he was slurring his words.
McDonald allegedly told the trooper he had too much to drink. He said he felt “terrible” about what happened and wanted to make things right, Darrow wrote.
McDonald was charged Wednesday with four counts of vehicular homicide. He is accused of causing the Nov. 29 crash that killed two Clearview couples: Brad and Melissa Agerup and Thomas and Hilda Woods. The Agerups and the Woods were friends and neighbors returning home from planning a birthday party.
McDonald and his passenger were not seriously injured.
Investigators believe McDonald and his friend had been drinking since 9:30 a.m. at the Snohomish home they share. Later in the evening McDonald’s friend said he needed to retrieve some tools from his former supervisor’s home in Marysville, Darrow wrote.
McDonald agreed to give his friend a ride in his Ford Explorer. They stopped for beer on the way, court papers said. They stayed at the house for some time and then decided to head home.
McDonald’s friend told investigators he thought McDonald was too drunk to drive. He offered to drive even though he had a suspended license, Darrow wrote. McDonald refused and got behind the wheel of his Explorer. They headed east on 108th Street, which intersects with Highway 9.
His friend told investigators he urged McDonald to slow down and said his driving “scared the hell out” of him, Darrow wrote.
McDonald ran the stop sign and smashed into a Hyundai, which was headed southbound on the highway. The impact flipped the vehicle over and it landed on an embankment across the roadway, Darrow wrote.
McDonald walked away from the crash, and didn’t try to give any aid to the four people inside the Hyundai, Darrow wrote.
A woman living nearby heard the crash, grabbed a flashlight and walked down her driveway. That’s where she saw McDonald and asked him if he was hurt.
The woman told investigators that McDonald said he couldn’t get a drunken driving charge and allegedly said, “My God, what have I done?” Darrow wrote.
The woman urged him to return to the crash scene. She insisted she drive him there when he told her he’d walk, court paper said.
McDonald was taken to a local hospital where medical staff drew blood. The results of those tests are pending. A trooper conducted a portable breath test to measure McDonald’s alcohol level. The test revealed an blood alcohol level of .123, well above the state’s .08 legal limit.
McDonald is being held on $1 million bail. He is scheduled to be arraigned on the charges today.
The Agerups are survived by their two teenage daughters. The Woods are survived by their grown daughters. Hundreds of people gathered at memorial services for both couples.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
