Driver faces vehicular assault charge

A 25-year-old man has been charged with negligent vehicular assault and driving under the influence of alcohol after colliding with a pedestrian hard enough to fracture the man’s skull, rupture his spleen and break several ribs.

Michael Scherrer was arrested Friday after Kalispell Police Department officers responding to a 911 call found Eric Appl severely injured in the parking lot of the Meridian Pointe Apartments on North Meridian Road at about 9:30 a.m.

A witness told officers he saw Scherrer’s silver Isuzu Trooper traveling through the parking lot at about 45 miles per hour. The witness said he “heard a loud thud and turned to see [Appl] flying through the air,” according to court documents.

A responding officer rendered aid to Appl until paramedics arrived and later noted that there was blood on the pavement and that Appl’s shoes were some 35 feet away from his body.

Kalispell Police Detective Scott Warnell said Tuesday that the incident still is under investigation and Scherrer potentially could face more severe charges if the act is determined to have been intentional.

Scherrer had called 911 prior to the collision to report that Appl had assaulted him and took $300 from him while they were in an apartment. He initially claimed that Appl had also taken the keys to his vehicle before notifying a dispatcher that he had found them.

Minutes later, another caller reported that the Isuzu had collided with Appl in the parking lot.

Scherrer waited for officers at the intersection of West Reserve Drive and U.S. 93 where he was detained for questioning and later arrested.

He allegedly admitted hitting Appl and said he did not stop or look back to see if he was injured.

According to court documents, Scherrer denied purposely hitting Appl, stating that he was too intoxicated to have made a conscious decision to hit someone with his vehicle.

“We’re still looking into the possibility that he did it on purpose,” Warnell said.

Appl is still recovering from his injuries at Kalispell Regional Medical Center.

Scherrer is being held in the Flathead Adult Detention Center. An arraignment has not yet been scheduled.

Negligent vehicular assault, a felony, is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. A conviction for misdemeanor driving under the influence of alcohol carries a maximum penalty of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.