KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Charges have been authorized against St. Joseph County Sheriff Mark Lillywhite.
Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Getting says he’s authorized charges of operating while intoxicated and carrying a concealed weapon while under the influence of alcohol against Lillywhite.
"Being a police officer doesn't make you above the law. It certainly isn't a defense to committing a crime and when something like this is alleged to have happened, there needs to be accountability from the system as well," Getting told FOX 17.
Both charges are misdemeanors punishable by up to 93 days in jail.
The charges stem from a crash in the early morning hours of February 26 in Schoolcraft Township.
Police reports, obtained by FOX 17 through a Freedom of Information Act request, describeLillywhite as being extremely intoxicated and incoherent.
According to the reports, Sheriff Lillywhite was driving on US-131 near West YZ Avenue just before 2:30 a.m. when he rear-ended the vehicle in front of him, causing it to veer off the road and roll several times. The report states Lillywhite’s vehicle, which belonged to the sheriff’s office, drove off the road and into a ditch.
A trooper at the scene reported Lillywhite was “extremely intoxicated and denied being the driver” of the car but would not give them the name of anyone else who may have been in the vehicle.
Three witnesses all identified Lillywhite as the sole occupant of the vehicle.
Officials who responded to the scene say Lillywhite was visibly intoxicated, reporting slurred speech, bloodshot eyes and the smell of intoxicants.
According to the original incident report, MSP troopers were asked by Kalamazoo County deputies to take over the investigation on scene due to a potential conflict of interest as they both knew Lillywhite, and he was the sheriff in St. Joseph County.
When troopers approached Sheriff Lillywhite’s vehicle, he was in the front passenger seat. Troopers noted Lillywhite struggled to exit the vehicle and stated, “a majority of his statements were incoherent.”
When troopers asked if there were any weapons in the vehicle, Lillywhite responded that there were three firearms inside. Troopers found one in the center console and two in the trunk and seized all three.
One of the witnesses at the scene told investigators it appeared that Lillywhite was not wearing a seatbelt and was thrown into the back of the vehicle during the crash. The witness told police as they were checking on Lillywhite, he started climbing back into the front seat of the vehicle and repeatedly stated, “I know I’m in trouble.”
An inspection of Lillywhite’s vehicle confirmed the front driver and passenger seatbelts were not in use at the time of the crash. The inspection also showed he was going 99 mph at the time of the crash. According to a sergeant who was called to investigate, the speedometer of Lillywhite’s vehicle stuck at 100 mph.
Lillywhite was taken into custody that night but was released later that day.
"Mr. Lillywhite might come in, plead guilty, admit what he is done or maybe the case will be set for further proceedings. We'll have to wait and see what he and his attorney do next," Getting added.
Lillywhite could be arraigned as early as Friday.
