OCALA, Fla. (WSVN) — A north Florida woman has sparked nationwide anger after her mugshot showed her grinning ear-to-ear following a deadly drunk driving crash.
Angenette Welk, 44, was arrested last Thursday in Marion County after officers said she failed to brake in time and rear-ended a Hyundai Elantra, which ended up crushed between Welk’s vehicle and a tractor-trailer in front, WKMG reported. The crash happened just after 12 p.m.
The driver of the Hyundai, 18-year-old Shiyanne Kroll, suffered minor injuries. But Kroll’s mother, 60-year-old Sandra Clarkson, passed away days after the crash.
[protected-iframe id=”28da2180476f726eaa7c6bbd3e1e3773-110336915-112670968″ info=”//z.cdn.turner.com/cnn/van/resources/2.1/scripts/van-widgets.js” ]
According to Fox News, Welk told Florida Highway Patrol troopers at the scene that she crashed because she had dropped her phone. But FHP said she had trouble performing a field sobriety test, and her blood alcohol level tested at .172, more than twice the legal limit.
Clarkson’s older daughter, Keonna Sciacca, told WKMG that her mother was paralyzed following the crash, which happened just one day after their mom’s birthday. It was on Mother’s Day when doctors told the family she was brain dead.
“It’s definitely wrecked our family forever, not just temporarily,” Sciacca said. “This was a permanent thing that [Welk] did.”
When Welk’s mugshot was released, Kroll said it was “disgusting” to see her smiling immediately following the crash.
“That disgusts me and that means she has no remorse for what she did at all and I hope that judge sees that picture and says the same thing,” Kroll said.
“I don’t care if you’re drunk or not and you’re laughing, smiling… ‘hey, look at me,'” Sciacca added. “It’s sick. There was nothing funny about it.”
Welk has been charged with DUI in the crash. Now FHP is now working with the State Attorney’s Office to upgrade those charges to DUI manslaughter.
“DUI manslaughter doesn’t really say what this is,” Sciacca said. “It’s murder.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help pay for their mother’s funeral expenses.
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.