WAUPACA, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — The man who allegedly caused a fatal traffic crash Saturday which killed four people told police he had drank “a lot” of alcohol before the crash, and was driving 75 mph, according to the criminal complaint. It would be the suspect’s fifth drunk driving offense.
Scott Farmer, 47, of Neenah, was charged with four counts of homicide by intoxicated use of a motor vehicle, OWI 5th offense, and operating while revoked. Farmer made his initial court appearance Monday by video from the jail.
The criminal complaint identified the victims as Daniela, 9; Lilian, 14; Fabian, 23; and Daniel, 25.
A GoFundMe page established for the family identifies them as the children of Pastor Kurt Schilling and his wife, Paulina. He is the pastor at Emmaus Lutheran Church, Waupaca.
Assistant District Attorney Veronica Isherwood asked the judge to set a $4 million cash bail — $1 million for each victim.
“After the arrival of the police, he [Farmer] then fought with police and fought with ambulance personnel,” said Isherwood. “He was completely uncooperative.”
Farmer’s defense attorney Alex Gelhar didn’t specify an amount, but asked for a lower cash bond. Judge Raymond Huber then set the bond at $750,000 cash.
“$750,000 after killing four beautiful people’s lives, our children,” said Schilling, who was at Monday’s initial appearance. “Where’s the justice in that?”
“Mr. Farmer has strong familial ties to the area. He’s spent his entire life in the state, and he has significant financial ties to the area that could indicate to the court that he is not a flight risk,” said Gelhar.
Schilling, the step-father of all four victims, asked the judge to consider a higher bond amount, but it was not changed.
The Weyauwega-School District sent a letter home Sunday, saying two of its students and an alumnus died in the crash, and counseling is available. The district’s note was sent before the fourth victim died.
Dear Families,
It is with deep sadness that I provide you with this update. We have learned that two Weyauwega-Fremont School District students and one alumnus have died in a wrong-way accident on Highway 10 Saturday night. The deceased include a W-F Elementary student and a W-F High School student. Another alumnus has also been hospitalized with serious injuries.
Out of respect for the families, we are not releasing the names of the students at this time.
We are truly devastated by this news. Counselors will be available at each of our schools this upcoming week to speak with any students who may need some additional help processing this situation. We encourage anyone who needs assistance to meet with a counselor at any time.
Please join us in keeping the victims’ family and friends in our thoughts at this time. Thank you for your support as we grieve together as a school district community.
According to the criminal complaint, police were called to a report of a wrong-way driver on Highway 10, near County X, in Weyauwega. The crash happened at about 9:15 p.m. Saturday.
Farmer’s truck was travelling westbound in the eastbound lane, and crashed into the other vehicle. Three people in the crash died at the scene. The driver, Daniel, was transported to the hospital, but died Sunday, the complaint states.
A medic told police there was a large bottle of vodka by Farmer.
“I just spun out,” Farmer told police.
The officer described the conversation:
“I asked him if he had hit anybody and he replied, “I didn’t hit anybody”. I observed an open bottle of vodka in the center console area, just to the right of his right leg. It was approximately 3/4 full I could smell a strong odor of intoxicants emanating from inside of the vehicle. I observed Scott to have bloodshot and glassy (or watery) eyes. His eyelids were droopy. He had a very slow, thick, and slurred speech. His speech was incoherent at times and his sentences would trail off so I could not understand them. His facial movements were slow and delayed, specifically his facial and eye movements. He also would not listen when asked to stay still in his seat. He attempted to crawl over to the passenger side of the vehicle at one point. These observations are all indicative of impairment, more specifically impairment caused by consuming alcohol,” the officer wrote.
While in the ambulance, Farmer was asked how much he had to drink, to which he replied, “A lot.” When asked what day it was, he responded Feb. 12. When asked how fast he was driving, he replied “(Expletive) 75.”
If convicted, it would be Farmer’s fifth OWI conviction, after previous offenses of Oct. 6, 1999, Sept. 18, 2001, Nov. 29, 2006, and Dec. 18, 2019. His driver’s license was revoked.
Also, because of the previous convictions, his legal limit for driving would be .02, instead of .08. The criminal complaint does not cite a breath test, but said a blood draw would performed.
Farmer returns to court Dec. 26 for a balance of initial appearance, as he does not yet have an attorney. Gelhar is a public defender who made a special appearance Monday, but Farmer does not qualify for those services.
