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Former Parke County sheriff, wife killed in accident with drunk driver
ROCKVILLE — A former Parke County sheriff and his wife have died following a head-on collision with a reported drunk driver south of Rockville late Thursday night.
Authorities said 74-year-old Michael Eslinger and his 73-year-old wife, Darla Eslinger, died in the crash along U.S. 41. They were passengers in an SUV being driven by their 17-year-old granddaughter, who was injured in the accident.
The Parke County Sheriff’s Office reports that the accident occurred just after 11:30 p.m. about two miles south of Rockville on U.S. 41.
Mike Eslinger served two terms as Parke County sheriff in the 1970s. He was later re-elected as sheriff and served another two terms, retiring in 2014. Darla Eslinger had retired as the county’s emergency management director.
The Parke County Sheriff’s Department said the Eslingers’ SUV was hit head-on by a truck driven by 41-year-old Brian Robertson, Rockville, who now faces charges of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated causing death and operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury.
Robertson registered a .117 percent blood-alcohol content (in Indiana, .08 percent is considered intoxicated under law).
Robertson suffered internal injuries and was taken to an Indianapolis hospital. His passenger, Hannah Flaurr, 28, sustained serious injuries and was taken to Regional Hospital.
The teenage driver of the Eslinger vehicle was also taken to Regional Hospital to be treated for broken bones and cuts.
Eslinger twice served back-to-back terms as Parke County sheriff. He retired three years ago. He was also a past executive director of the Indiana Sheriff’s Association. He and his wife Darla had been married for 55 years.