Sheriff's Office: Fatal boat launch crash due to alcohol impairment

Alcohol impairment has been deemed the cause of a fatal Jan. 13 vehicle crash at the Hayden boat launch.

Autopsy and toxicology reports showed Christopher Lancaster, 34, of Spokane, had a blood alcohol limit of .144, nearly twice the legal limit, at the time of his death.

Lancaster was pronounced dead at Kootenai Health after the vehicle he was driving went into the lake around 2:30 a.m. at the Honeysuckle Beach boat launch.

The vehicle’s other occupant, Andrea Berkey, 25, Post Falls, a friend of Lancaster’s who was found holding onto the dock but still in the water, was treated and released from the hospital for cold-water injuries.

During the investigation, the Sheriff’s Office received information that another vehicle may have been present, involved, or near Lancaster’s vehicle at the time of the crash. Investigators reviewed surveillance video obtained from the crash site, as well as video from The Corner Bar that Lancaster drove away from just prior to the crash.

“These videos eliminated any rumor or possibility of a second vehicle of being involved with the crash and confirmed they did not witness the collision,” said a news release.

Berkey was interviewed extensively, and investigators said they found her recollection of what occurred to be consisent with the evidence obtained during the investigation.

The Sheriff’s Office reports the case has been closed after being found to be “consistent with an automobile collision and subsequent drowning due to an alcohol-impaired driver.”