2 charged in fatal five-vehicle crash on I-5

Pierce County prosecutors have charged two suspected drunken drivers in connection with a five-car crash on Interstate 5 that killed a Tacoma man.

Spencer Marr, 24, and Julio Gonzalez-Herrera, 23, are charged with vehicular homicide in the April 9 death of 25-year-old Dominic Bryant.

Both men are to be arraigned Sept. 22.

The collision took place just before 3 a.m. April 9 in the northbound lanes of I-5 near the Berkeley Avenue exit.

Charging papers gave this account of the crash:

Marr and Bryant left an Olympia bar after drinking whiskey sours and were driving home when Marr’s car hit a BMW sedan that had been abandoned on the freeway shoulder in the northbound lanes.

The disabled BMW was lifted on an automobile jack when Marr’s Toyota MR2 hit it. Marr’s car spun sideways on the freeway and stopped across at least two lanes.

The Washington State Patrol said the car no longer was running and its lights were off when a Ford Explorer slammed into the passenger side of the car.

A Toyota Corolla then struck Marr’s vehicle.

Another car swerved around the wreckage and hit a barrier wall.

The dashboard in Marr’s car crushed Bryant’s legs and trapped him inside. Firefighters had to cut off the roof to pull him from the car.

Bryant later was pronounced dead at Madigan Army Medical Center.

Marr was stumbling around the scene of the collision, mumbling “I’m faded,” according to court records. Toxicology tests later showed he had alcohol and marijuana in his system.

Also allegedly under the influence of alcohol and marijuana was Gonzalez-Herrera, who was driving the Ford Explorer, the State Patrol said.

He told troopers he and friends were returning from a casino and he was unable to avoid hitting the car in the middle of the freeway.

This story was originally published September 9, 2016 at 1:24 PM with the headline "2 charged in fatal five-vehicle crash on I-5."