Prosecutors have charged a Kalispell man with vehicular homicide while under the influence in connection with a deadly November 2023 wreck near Columbia Falls.  

Tyrel Lee Eaton, 36, is expected to appear before Judge Paul Sullivan in Flathead County District Court on July 17 for his arraignment on the felony charge. He remains in the county jail with bail set at $250,000.  

Eaton allegedly claimed he was a passenger in the Subaru Impreza, which shot off the pavement just north of where Halfmoon Road crosses railroad tracks, but investigators believe he was behind the wheel based on evidence collected at the scene.  

When Montana Highway Patrol troopers arrived at the crash about 12:06 a.m., Nov. 1, 2023, they found the Impreza's two occupants outside the vehicle, court documents said. One, a 53-year-old man, was declared dead at the scene. The other, identified as Eaton, was being treated for his injuries.  

A witness to the aftermath of the wreck told troopers that both men were outside the vehicle when he arrived. Eaton, who he described as smelling of alcohol, allegedly identified the dead man as the driver. 

Investigators believe that the Impreza — registered to Eaton — was heading northbound when it failed to negotiate a curve in the road by the railroad crossing, court documents said. After crossing the centerline and leaving the pavement, the vehicle went down a steep embankment and collided with several trees. It eventually hit the bottom of the embankment. 

Evidence indicated that the passenger was partially ejected, court documents said. Authorities found blood on the passenger side of the windshield and on the passenger side of the hood.  

Both airbags deployed in the crash, but there was significantly more blood on the driver's side, according to court documents. Analysis of the blood collected from the driver's side airbag showed that it came from Eaton, court documents alleged.  

Investigators also analyzed the blood found on the passenger side windshield and hood, linking it to the dead man, court documents said. 

Troopers later spoke with employees of a nearby bar and learned that both Eaton and the other man drank there until they left about midnight Oct. 1, court documents said.  

A blood sample taken from Eaton while he received treatment at a Logan Health facility showed his blood alcohol content at 0.173, according to court documents.  

Vehicular homicide while under the influence is punishable by up to 30 years in Montana State Prison and a $50,000 fine. 

News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or [email protected]. 

    Tyrel Lee Eaton. (Photo courtesy the Flathead County Sheriff's Office)