Sheriff Crashes County Vehicle at 100 MPH with .252 BAC

St. Joseph County Sheriff Mark Lillywhite crashed his county-owned Chevrolet Traverse into a Nissan Rogue at nearly 100 MPH on February 26, 2023, at 2:18 AM on southbound US-131 in Schoolcraft Township, Michigan. Vehicle telemetry data revealed Lillywhite was traveling at the high speed in the five seconds before impact and never applied his brakes, with his headlights turned off.

The collision caused the Nissan Rogue, carrying a husband and wife, to roll across the median. Michigan State Police responding to the scene conducted field sobriety tests on Lillywhite, which resulted in a blood alcohol content reading of .252, more than three times Michigan's legal limit of .08.

Troopers discovered multiple weapons and law enforcement equipment in Lillywhite's wrecked county vehicle. The inventory included a Glock pistol located in the center console next to his sheriff's badge, two bulletproof vests, and two additional handguns stored in Pelican cases in the trunk.

Body camera footage from multiple Michigan State Police troopers captured the investigation, including Fire Battalion Chief observations of Lillywhite moving from the driver's seat to the passenger seat after the crash. The footage also documented the consent-to-search process and the discovery of the weapons.

Radio communications revealed the challenges troopers faced when identifying a sitting sheriff as the at-fault driver in the crash. The incident prompted consultation calls between responding officers and supervisors regarding proper procedures for handling a law enforcement official's involvement in such a serious traffic collision.

Lillywhite faces charges related to operating while intoxicated and the high-speed collision that endangered multiple lives on the Michigan highway.