Tim Ryan, tryan@wolfrivermedia.com
The driver authorities believe was responsible for the death of highway worker Derek Stempa at a road construction site in May has died, the Shawano County Sheriff’s Department said Wednesday.
Sheriff Adam Bieber said his office was intending to refer charges against Dennis St. John, 69, of Tigerton. But the office learned earlier this week that St. John had passed away on Aug. 17 at the Aurora Medical Center in Two Rivers.
Bieber said the Manitowoc County Coroner determined that St. John died of advanced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Stempa, 30, of Shawano, was working as a flag person at the intersection of state Highway 47 and County Road G on May 26 when he was struck by a southbound 2003 Dodge Caravan driven by St. John.
According to Bieber, the investigation showed that St. John had one dog in his lap and another on his shoulder, and was fumbling with an oxygen mask at the time he struck Stempa.
Any specific charge against St. John would have been determined by the district attorney’s office, but, according to Bieber, information that would have been referred to the DA indicates that St. John was driving recklessly and was inattentive.
Blood tests received by the sheriff’s office on Aug. 10 also showed that St. John had the prescription drug Lorazepam in his system. A side effect of the medication is that it can cause drowsiness, but it’s unclear whether that was a factor in the crash.
“We feel (St. John) was driving recklessly. This could have been prevented,” Bieber said. “I’m disappointed that we’re not able to bring him to justice and hold him responsible. I was hoping to bring closure to the family.”
Bieber said he has been in touch with the family since learning of St. John’s death.
He said family members also expressed disappointment, but also some sense of relief that there would be no court proceedings.
“It’s uncertain what they would have felt like sitting through that,” Bieber said.
Bieber said there has been a lot of public interest in the case and there have been questions about why the investigation was taking so long.
“I hope the public understands these things take time,” he said.
Investigators were waiting not only for blood tests to come back from the state crime lab, but also for the State Patrol to complete its accident reconstruction and evaluation of St. John’s vehicle.
Bieber said the State Patrol found the vehicle in good working order, with no brake problems or other defects that might have played a part in the crash.
Bieber said sheriff’s detectives were looking to do one more interview with St. John after getting the blood test results back on Aug. 10.
In attempting to contact him, they learned he was no longer living in his trailer in Tigerton and had been transported to Aurora Medical Center. They subsequently learned St. John had died.
“We just found out Monday or Tuesday,” Bieber said. “Unfortunately, that completes our investigation.”
Bieber noted that there continues to be strong community support for the Stempa family.
A memorial fund in Derek Stempa’s name has been established at Premier Community Bank in Shawano for those wishing to assist the family.