Driver charged with DUI, meth

The driver in a one-vehicle accident along U.S. Highway 2 just south of Libby last month has been charged with felony drug offenses as well as driving under the influence after investigating officers found methamphetamine along with empty beer bottles in the wreckage.

Frank Harry Hazel II, 28, is facing felony charges of drug possession, possession with intent to distribute and use, possession of property subject to criminal forfeiture in addition to misdemeanor counts of DUI and possession of drug paraphernalia. If convicted on all counts, he could be sentenced to a maximum of more than 35 years behind bars.

Hazel was the driver of a vehicle that went off the highway near the former Kootenai Veterinary Service around 10:45 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 13. According to Montana Highway Patrol Sgt. Duane Bowers, who responded to the scene, Hazel was westbound and for no apparent reason crossed both eastbound lanes and drove on the shoulder for about 120 yards before hitting a ravine, causing his vehicle to roll partially onto its side.

In an affidavit filed in district court, Deputy Boyd White of the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office, who also responded to the accident scene, said he found Hazel sitting outside the vehicle with a bloody nose and a cut on his head. Hazel's eyes were glassy, his speech was slow and he appeared disoriented and lethargic, White reported.

Looking inside the vehicle, White said he saw several empty beer bottles along with a clear plastic bag in a center console drink holder containing a yellowish crystalline substance that appeared to be methamphetamine. White rode along with Hazel in the ambulance that took him to the hospital. At the hospital, nearly $2,400 - some of it rolled up and wrapped in black tape - was removed from Hazel's pockets, White reported.

According to White's affidavit, both the crystalline substance in the bag and the bundle of cash from Hazel's pocket tested positive for methamphetamine.

In a separate affidavit, Bowers reported finding six empty beer bottles in Hazel's vehicle along with a broken glass pipe and a small silver container with a threaded top containing methamphetamine.

Because the cash found on Hazel is suspected to be the proceeds from drug sales, it could be seized if he is convicted of use or possession of property subject to criminal forfeiture.