A sentence has been announced for the airman who was accused of intoxication manslaughter in June. Anjelika Faul, a 22-year-old senior airman at the 82nd Dental Squadron, entered a guilty plea to intoxication manslaughter and drunken or reckless operation of a vehicle. She elected to have a judge-only trial. The judge sentenced her to no more than five years of confinement, and she had previously accepted a plea agreement of 30 months. Her rank will also be reduced to E-1. After she has served her sentence, she will receive a bad conduct discharge from the Air Force.
During the court martial, Faul spoke about the events that led to the crash that night. On June 15th, 2012, she was partying with friends until about 2:30 a.m. She admitted to having consumed close to 20 alcoholic drinks before getting behind the wheel. She allegedly received a text about one of her friends being in the hospital. Sadly, she decided to get behind the wheel to drive to United Regional. While making an illegal u-turn on the interstate, she hit a motorcyclist.
The motorcyclist, 53-year-old Michael Brown, succumbed to his injuries after being rushed to the hospital. Among his injuries, Brown had a lacerated spleen and liver. The prosecution called five witnesses to the stand who all worked with Brown. He was described as quiet and hardworking. He was the type of employee who went above and beyond. Faul was also taken to the hospital that night for a blood alcohol test. Her blood alcohol content was .24 which is three times the legal limit in Texas. She was then arrested and booked into the Wichita County Jail with a $250,000 bond.
Sadly, this hasn’t been the only intoxication manslaughter case in Texoma this year. We have reported on a number of different cases involving drunk drivers. In March, a Midwestern State University graduate was killed in a drunk driving crash. In April, an Iowa Park man was charged with intoxication manslaughter in a crash that resulted in the death of a 22 year old. Family members who have lost a loved one in a crash involving a drunk driver may have a claim against that driver. It’s important to speak with an experienced wrongful death attorney after this type of crash. The team at the Altman Legal Group sends their deepest condolences to the family members, friends and coworkers of Brown.