The driver involved in an alleged DUI crash that killed a Flathead Valley teenager on Aug. 23 outside of Whitefish had been sentenced in a separate DUI case just five days earlier, according to court filings. 

Andrew Glenn Sullivan, 20, of Marion, was charged Monday with felony negligent homicide in Flathead County District Court. He is being held in the county detention center on $250,000 bail. His next court appearance is scheduled for Sept. 4. 

Montana Highway Patrol troopers responded to the crash at Mountain Meadow Road and Tally Lake Road at about 1:53 a.m., according to court documents. At the scene, a trooper found a damaged Dodge Ram pickup on the northbound embankment and a 17-year-old girl dead on the ground next to the vehicle. Two males were also present. 

The trooper identified Sullivan as the driver of the pickup and noted his eyes appeared watery and glossy, the documents state. 

Sullivan allegedly told the trooper the teen girl had not been ejected from the vehicle, but had fainted while riding in the back with another passenger. He said the incident distracted him, and he had begun to slow down when the pickup left the roadway. He also claimed another teenage passenger, who left the scene, was “freaking out,” which further distracted him. 

Sullivan denied consuming alcohol or drugs and said he believed a bottle of vodka allegedly found in the truck was water, according to the documents. He told the trooper he did not swallow any vodka, but that it had been in his mouth. A preliminary breath test showed a blood alcohol concentration of 0.057. Sullivan later consented to a blood draw, which was sent to the Montana State Crime Lab for analysis. 

He also admitted there was a nearby party where drugs and alcohol were being consumed, the documents state. 

During the investigation, the trooper allegedly found empty alcohol containers, a glass jar of marijuana and a bottle of vodka in the vehicle. A large pool of blood was observed near the rear passenger door, but no blood was found inside the truck. 

Evidence indicated the teen’s upper body was partially outside the vehicle before the crash and that she likely struck a tree as the pickup went down the embankment, according to the trooper. Emergency medical responders said the girl broke her neck in the crash. 

Sullivan had previously been cited for driving under the influence in May by the Kalispell Police Department. As part of a plea deal, he admitted to operating a vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.02 while under the age of 21. For drivers under age 21, the alcohol concentration limit in Montana is 0.02. He was sentenced Aug. 18. 

In June, Sullivan was cited for leaving the scene of an accident after losing control of his vehicle and driving into Bitterroot Lake, the documents state.