Driver admits causing death

by Kevin Lilly
Pharos-Tribune staff writer

Sat, May 17 2008

— The man who killed a Logansport woman and injured several others in a drunk driving accident in downtown Logansport last year changed his plea to guilty this week.
David A. Lambert, 23 of Battle Ground, appeared in Cass Circuit Court Thursday for a plea hearing that outlined part of his sentence.
If Judge Leo Burns accepts the plea, Lambert would have to serve 100 hours of community service and pay restitution to the family of Katherine E. “Kay” Scagnoli for funeral and medical expenses. He would also have to pay medical expenses for Katherine D. Kaminsky, and he would be subject to a fine, court costs and a drug/alcohol evaluation.
The one thing attorneys did not discuss was a possible prison sentence.
With the agreement as it stands, Lambert is facing a charge of causing death when operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, a class B felony carrying a prison sentence of six to 20 years. Three other charges — causing serious bodily injury when operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated endangering a person and leaving the scene of a personal-injury accident — would be dropped.
Jay Hirschauer, Lambert’s defense attorney, said there is still a lot of evidence to present at sentencing, which is scheduled for 2 p.m. Nov. 15 in Cass Circuit Court.
Lambert’s charges stem from a two-vehicle crash at Third Street and Broadway the evening of Aug. 16, 2006.
Lambert reportedly ran a red light at Third Street and Broadway, plowing into the passenger side of a 2005 Ford Econoline van owned by Peak Community Services. All seven people in the van were injured.
Scagnoli, one of the passengers, died two weeks later.
The collision spun Lambert’s 1988 Dodge Ram 180 degrees and sent the van into the opposite lane nearly 50 yards from the stop light.
Logansport firefighters used hydraulic cutters to free victims of the crash. The van doors were jammed shut, even on the side opposite the impact. Everyone was trapped inside.
The injuries included head injuries, bleeding, abrasions, abdominal pain and a leg injury. Those injured ranged in age from 20 to 50 years old.
Lambert reportedly fled on foot, running between two homes on Banker’s Row before swimming across the Eel River.
A witness described Lambert to police and pointed the direction he fled. Police also retrieved the expired registration from the vehicle, which gave Lambert’s name. The name “Lambert Construction & Excavation” and a phone number were also on the back driver’s side window of the truck.
A Logansport police officer found Lambert in the 700 block of Barron Street. When the officer approached, Lambert said, “You found me. I give up,” according to a police report.
Lambert asked police if there were injuries and was advised there were. Lambert told police he fled because he had been drinking and did not want to get in any more trouble.
When found, police said Lambert walked with an “unsteady balance and staggered manner.” He failed three sobriety field tests and had a blood alcohol content of .14, according to the breath test he took at the time of his arrest. He later refused a chemical test.
Lambert had a prior conviction in 2005 in Tippecanoe County for operating while intoxicated.
Chief Deputy Prosecutor Lisa Swaim, who said she discussed the plea agreement with the families of the victims, established a factual basis for the guilty plea. She asked Lambert if he had been drinking to the point of intoxication. He said yes and that he had been drinking beer. She asked if he ran a red light and he said he did.
Lambert said he hit his head in the crash and did not fully recall what had happened. Parts of it came back to him once he read the police report. He said his memory loss was a combination of hitting his head and drinking beer.
Lambert said he was now in treatment for alcohol abuse.
Burns took the plea under advisement, saying he would decide at the next hearing whether to accept or reject the agreement.
Kevin Lilly can be reached at (574) 732-5117, or via e-mail at kevin.lilly@pharostribune.com