VERMONT STATE POLICE
CASE#: 22B2005235
RANK/TROOPER FULL NAME: Trooper Mengbei Wang
STATION: Royalton Barracks
CONTACT#: 802-234-9933
DATE/TIME: 3:22 pm Nov. 17, 2022
STREET: Interstate 89 south mm 11
TOWN: Sharon
LANDMARK AND/OR CROSS STREETS: mile marker 11
WEATHER: Clear
ROAD CONDITIONS: Dry blacktop surface
VEHICLE #1
OPERATOR/ACCUSED: Dawn Baustert
AGE: 46
SEAT BELT? Yes
CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: Essex, VT
VEHICLE YEAR: 2017
VEHICLE MAKE: Chevrolet
VEHICLE MODEL: Suburban
DAMAGE TO VEHICLE #1: Contact damage to front driver’s side of vehicle
INJURIES:
- Silas Baustert, 11 — rear driver’s side passenger: fatal.
- Dawn Baustert, 46 — operator: significant, non-life-threatening.
- Timothy Baustert, 57 — front seat passenger: minor.
- Juvenile female, 14 — rear passenger side passenger: significant, non-life-threatening.
HOSPITAL: Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, NH
VIOLATIONS:
- Driving under the influence with death resulting.
- Driving under the influence with serious bodily injury resulting.
- Grossly negligent operation with death resulting.
- Grossly negligent operation with serious bodily injury resulting.
- Reckless endangerment
SUMMARY OF INCIDENT:
The Vermont State Police has completed its investigation into the November 17, 2022, vehicle crash on Interstate 89 in Sharon in which an 11-year-old boy was killed, and three other occupants were injured, two of them seriously. The investigation involved the execution of multiple search warrants, forensic and laboratory testing, crash reconstruction, and interviews with involved parties. VSP worked closely with the office of the Windsor County state’s attorney throughout the case. According to the findings of the investigation, the operator of the vehicle, Dawn Baustert, 46, of Essex, was intoxicated at the time of the crash.
The Vermont State Police on Monday, May 1, 2023, issued a citation to Baustert through her attorney on charges of driving under the influence with death resulting, driving under the influence with serious bodily injury resulting, grossly negligent operation with death resulting, grossly negligent operation with serious bodily injury resulting, and reckless endangerment.
Baustert was ordered to appear for arraignment at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, May 23, in the Criminal Division of Vermont Superior Court in White River Junction. No further information is currently available. The affidavit of probable cause will be filed with the court and made public following Baustert’s arraignment. Members of the media should call the Court Clerk’s Office to confirm details of the hearing.
***Update No. 1, 5:25 p.m. Friday, Nov. 18, 2022***
The juvenile who died in this crash is identified as Silas Baustert, 11, of Essex.
The investigation into the cause of the crash remains active and ongoing.
VSP will continue to provide updates as the investigation continues.
***Initial news release, 6:45 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 17, 2022***
On November 17, 2022, at approximately 1522 hours, the Vermont State Police were dispatched to the report of a single car crash on Interstate 89 south near mile marker 11 in the town of Sharon, VT. The operator of Vehicle 1 was identified as Dawn Baustert (45) of Essex, VT. A juvenile passenger sustained fatal injuries and was declared deceased on the scene.
Preliminary investigation has shown that Operator 1 was traveling south on Interstate 89 and drifted off the passing lane shoulder into rock ledges. The impact against the rock ledges was primarily taken by the driver’s side. The vehicle sustained complete damage.
The Vermont State Police were assisted on the scene by members of White River Valley Ambulance, Hartford Fire Department, Northern EMS, Vermont Medical Examiner’s Office, and the Vermont State Police Crash Reconstruction Team responded to the scene and are actively investigating this incident. Anyone who may have witnessed this motor vehicle crash is encouraged to contact the Royalton State Police Barracks.
No further information is available currently.
