Speeding drunk BMW driver accused of knocking over tractor, hurting a farmer near Pasco

A suspected drunk driver is accused of slamming into a tractor in north Franklin County, tipping it over and injuring the driver.

Investigators say his blood alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit. Now, he’s charged with vehicular assault.

Jose J. Monroy, 27, was driving 70 mph in a no-passing zone when tried to go around a slower car in his BMW 335, said Franklin County sheriff’s deputies.

He slammed into a John Deere closed cab tractor pulling a sprayer at an intersection north of Basin City about 9:30 a.m. Aug. 10, show court documents.

The force of the crash knocked over the tractor, leaving the 48-year-old driver inside with a broken right hip and two large cuts to his head, said the documents.

Several co-workers took the injured driver to Othello Community Hospital.

Monroy allegedly told deputies he had fallen asleep before the crash in the rural farming area at Sagehill and Elbow roads.

He reportedly admitted to having three drinks 12 hours before the crash, court documents said.

But the deputy noticed a strong smell of alcohol coming from him and that his speech was slurred and barely coherent, said the documents.

The deputy used a portable breath test machine at the scene that measured a blood alcohol level of 0.21 percent — more than twice the legal limit of 0.08 in Washington state, according to court documents.

Two more breath samples were taken at the Franklin County jail in Pasco. Those showed a blood-alcohol level of 0.16 percent, said the documents.

He has pleaded innocent to vehicular assault and is out of jail after posting a $10,000 bond.

This story was originally published August 22, 2024 at 5:00 AM.