WELLS — The woman who is responsible for a head-on collision on the Maine Turnpike that killed a high school freshman and a limousine driver has had episodes of drunken driving, and police suspect alcohol was involved in Tuesday's crash.
Donna Bartlett, 38, was headed south in the turnpike's northbound lanes for several miles, side-swiping cars even as a Maine state trooper in the southbound lanes used his emergency lights and sirens in an attempt to stop her.
She was traveling in the center lane as her Chevrolet Tahoe slammed into an oncoming Lincoln Town Car in Ogunquit, at mile 14.
Killed in the crash were the town car's driver, James McLaughlin, 65, of Gorham, and Cooper Campbell, 15, of Scarborough, who was in the seat directly behind McLaughlin.
Campbell's father, Steven Campbell, 48, was seriously injured and was listed in satisfactory condition at Maine Medical Center Wednesday.
Campbell is a senior executive in human resources for Delhaize Group, the company that owns Scarborough-based Hannaford Bros. Co.
Campbell's family, gathered at Maine Medical Center Wednesday, declined a request for interviews.
Cooper Campbell was a freshman at Cheverus High School in Portland, and after his death, school officials scrambled to notify and offer comfort to his classmates.
"He was very well liked by the student body," said Principal Bill Burke. "And they're taking it very hard."
The death was announced Tuesday morning at a schoolwide assembly, which was followed by a prayer service, Burke said.
He said the Roman Catholic high school held a remembrance Mass after school Tuesday, and has been providing counseling to grieving students.
Counseling also was offered at Scarborough High School, where many students knew Cooper Campbell.
A relative of McLaughlin said the family did not want to comment Wednesday on his death. McLaughlin had driven to Logan Airport in Boston to drive the Campbells back to Maine.
Funeral arrangements for the victims were still being made.
Trooper Phil Alexander, who is overseeing the investigation, was doing interviews Wednesday for the case, which will be presented to the York County District Attorney for a decision on what charges, if any, to bring against Bartlett.
Alexander saw the violent collision and was the first on the scene.
His firsthand account will complement the forensic examination of the crash site to determine how fast the cars were traveling. Police also are trying to retrace Bartlett's steps before the crash and determine how and where she got on the turnpike.
Police would provide no additional details about the investigation Wednesday, but reinforced their suspicion that Bartlett might have been drinking.
"There is a strong suspicion that alcohol was involved," said state police spokesman Steve McCausland, though he would not say what evidence police have to support that belief.
Investigators took blood samples from both drivers to test for alcohol or drugs, as is done in all fatal crashes.
Bartlett injured her ankle in the crash and was released from the hospital Wednesday, a spokeswoman said.
Bartlett, a mother of two, lives with her husband on a rural road in Wells about seven miles from the Wells interchange on the turnpike.
Nobody was at the home Wednesday afternoon, and neighbors declined to talk about the couple.
An initial check of Bartlett's driving history with Maine authorities showed that she had only a single speeding ticket in the past 10 years.
Further research showed that she had two drunken-driving episodes.
In 1992, when she was 23, she had her license suspended for three months for driving with a blood alcohol content of 0.19 percent, according to the Secretary of State's Office.
In 1989, when she was 19, she was involved in an accident in Wells and had a blood alcohol content of 0.12...
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