Report: Jay County man drank 12-18 beers before accident that claimed father-in-law's life

PORTLAND, Ind. — Prosecutors allege a Jay County man drank 12 to 18 beers before he drove a utility task vehicle that his father-in-law fell out of, suffering a fatal head injury.

Terry David Emerick, 49, of Pennville, was charged Wednesday in Jay Superior Court with causing death when driving while intoxicated, a Level 4 felony carrying up to 12 years in prison.

According to a report filed by Jay County sheriff's deputies, Emerick on the evening of May 4 was driving a Polaris Ranger on Division Road when he made a turn onto Jay County Road 200 East.

At that point, deputies said, 68-year-old robert H. Langenkamp Jr. of Portland — Emerick's passenger and father-in-law — fell out of the Ranger and was critically injured. Langenkamp died a day later in a Fort Wayne hospital.

Deputies said Emerick smelled of alcohol at the scene, and, according to an affidavit, he told a deputy he was "drunk and that he drank a lot."

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During a later interview at the Jay County Jail, Emerick reportedly said he had consumed 12 to 18 beers before driving the UTV.

A breath test measured the Pennville man's blood-alcohol content at 0.285. In Indiana, mostorists with a BAC of 0.08 or higher are considered intoxicated. He was later taken to IU Health Jay County Hospital for a blood draw.

Emerick was convicted of driving while intoxicated, also in Jay Superior Court, in 2005.

Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Report: Jay County man drank 12-18 beers before accident that claimed father-in-law's life