A Columbia Falls woman accused of vehicular assault admitted that she hit a pedestrian while driving a rental truck under the influence of alcohol last summer.
Susan Pajnich pleaded guilty to one count of felony negligent vehicular assault in Flathead County District Court on Feb. 26.
According to court documents, Pajnich was driving a rental truck on South Hilltop Road near Columbia Falls on Aug. 23, 2014 when she hit a woman, later identified as Samantha Stover, who had stopped to help an injured cat in the roadway. Pajnich immediately left the scene of the accident. Stover was transported to Kalispell Regional Medical Center where she was treated for serious head trauma.
Police tracked the rental truck to Pajnich’s home. The vehicle had two large scuff marks on the bumper and a large red spot, which appeared to be blood, on the vehicle’s front suspension. While talking with Pajnich, an officer noticed that she smelled like alcohol and was uneasy on her feet. She was taken to North Valley Hospital and a blood test determined that her blood alcohol level was 0.28, more than three times the legal limit. Later, Pajnich said she remembered feeling a large bump when she was driving on South Hilltop Road.
In a plea agreement signed earlier this month, prosecutors stated they would recommend a 10-year sentence to the state’s Department of Corrections with seven years suspended. Brent Getty, the attorney for the defendant, is recommending that the state defer the imposition of the sentence for six years and instead place Pajnich on probation.
Pajnich will be sentenced in Flathead County District Court on May 7.