Morning Sentinel
Suspect in snowmobile death pleads not guilty
By BETTY JESPERSEN
Staff Writer Kennebec Journal & Morning Sentinel Saturday, April 28, 2007

FARMINGTON -- A Farmington woman charged with manslaughter in connection with the death of a snowmobile rider in February was arraigned Friday.

Sarah Forbes, 43, also is charged with felony operating under the influence of alcohol and causing the death of another person. She pleaded not guilty in Franklin County Superior Court.

On Feb. 25, Forbes' Mercury Mountaineer struck a 1990 Ski-Doo snowmobile operated by Richard Billian, 23, of Strong, at about 10:30 p.m. on Wilton Road, according to court documents.

According to court documents, Forbes' blood alcohol level at the time of the crash was .16 percent, twice the legal limit.

Forbes, who lives off High Street in Farmington, is currently out of jail on an unsecured bond on the condition that she not drive. She also was ordered not to possess or consume alcohol, and to submit to random searches and testing for alcohol use.

Billian and his fiancˇe, Lisa Cerqueira, 20, had been riding on a trail with a group of friends, according to police. One of the front runners on the sled got hung up on the curbing. According to the police report, as Billian got off to adjust it, the snowmobile was hit broadside.

Police said the impact threw Cerqueira 100 feet, leaving her critically injured with a torn aorta, liver lacerations and a shattered leg and arm. She died three days later.

In court Friday, Forbes, standing beside her attorney, John Alsop of Skowhegan, quietly answered "not guilty" to Judge Joseph Jabar's question on how she wished to plead to the charges.

A trial could take place as early as June but might be delayed until September due to the large amount of expert testimony both sides are expected to amass to prove their case to a jury, according to Franklin County Assistant District Attorney James Andrews.

Betty Jespersen -- 778-6991

bjespersen@centralmaine.com


Reader comments

Sort by: Oldest First | Newest first

papasmurf of skowhegan, ME
Apr 28, 2007 7:40 AM
want to know what, when her sentence is done and over that will be the end of it.
but the family will be scared for life, deeply scared...we have no justice here.
PUT ALL drunks on the registry...protect us all!!!report abuse
watchman of Livermore Falls, ME
Apr 28, 2007 8:46 AM
IF, and that is a big IF, she had not been drinking would this not have been treated as an accident? There is no way to forgive her for her self induced drunkedness and the fact she drove while intoxicated. She deserves whatever the law allows if convicted. If a fully aware driver had struck this snowmobile, would there have been a trial? Just asking.report abuse
JAS of Skowhegan, ME
Apr 28, 2007 9:44 AM
re:Watchman; Good point. I'm sure that it was the fact that a drunk driver hit these people that it was considered the crime that it is. She broke the law immediately when she got into her vehicle BECAUSE of the condition she was in. The second crime was hitting these people because of her impaired state.If she had been sober, I'm SURE this would not have happened. She would have had the presence of mind to react. That presence is absent when you're DRUNK!! Not guilty?? I think NOT!!
report abuse
Leon Richard of Farmington, ME
Apr 28, 2007 3:10 PM
If a fully aware driver struck the snowmobile it would be considered assault with a deadly weapon and attempted murder. report abuse

Show all 10 comments

You must be a registered user of MaineToday.com to post a comment. Register or log in.