Brian George
WASHINGTON COUNTY -- A West Bend man accused of driving drunk and killing a pedestrian who had been at the same Halloween costume party he was at has been sentenced to prison.
Brian George, 54, in October, pleaded no contest to one count of homicide by negligent operation of a vehicle and one count of operating a firearm while intoxicated.
In court on Thursday, Dec. 13, George was sentenced to serve five years in prison and five years extended supervision on the first charge, and nine months in jail on the second.
Additionally, his license was revoked for 12 months, and he was ordered to utilize an ignition interlock device for five years, when his driving privileges are reinstated.
The crash happened on Oct. 29, around 2:30 a.m. That's when prosecutors said a vehicle driven by George struck Jason Scherr, 37, who was found lying in the roadway near Jug's Hitching Post in the Town of Wayne in Washington County.
"We were initially responding there because we thought he was passed out on the road," said Capt. Martin Schulties, Washington County Sheriff's Office.
Despite life-saving efforts by first responders, Scherr was pronounced dead at the scene.
Prosecutors said George's wife approached investigators, and said "I think my husband may have hit someone." She said he thought he hit a deer -- or a person -- "but was not sure."
"The suspect pulled over a couple miles south of the intersection and called his spouse -- and then they returned to the scene," Schulties said.
Brian George
George was found near the scene in his wife's van -- and told authorities he'd had "too much" to drink. When asked what time he started drinking, he said "too early." When asked what time he stopped drinking, he said "too late." When asked whether he'd participate in field sobriety tests, he said "yeah, I'll fail them anyway."
Prosecutors said George accused bartenders of over-serving him, and investigators were looking into that claim.