Jury finds man guilty in snowmobile injury case

Following an April 11, 2024 trial in Sawyer County Circuit Court, a jury found Joel J. Beck, 41, of 14581W Hwy. K, Hayward, guilty of causing injury by operating a snowmobile with a prohibited blood alcohol concentration of more than 0.08 percent in a March 12, 2022 crash in the town of Bass Lake.

The jury found Beck not guilty of causing injury by intoxicated use of a snowmobile.

Judge Monica Isham set a sentencing and restitution hearing for Beck on May 10.

According to the criminal traffic complaint, at 7:52 p.m. March 12, 2022, Sawyer County, LCO and DNR officers and medical first responders responded to a report of two people injured when a snowmobiler turned and struck snowmobiles on the ice of Lac Courte Oreilles, 200 yards south of Winter Point.

Witnesses stated that five snowmobiles were parked at the junction of trails 3 and 37 waiting for another sledder to catch up with them when Beck came across the lake at high speed and his sled crashed into three of the parked snowmobiles, causing damage to the sleds and injuries to a woman from Lakeville, Minnesota.

Beck went over the handlebars of his sled and sustained a compound fracture of his right leg. A witness stated that Beck appeared to be intoxicated.

The injured woman stated she had minor knee pain but was able to walk. She said she was about to start her snowmobile when Beck’s sled came from behind her, throwing her, and then struck several other snowmobiles.

The woman was transported by private vehicle to the Hayward hospital.

A blood sample was drawn from Beck, which tested at 0.15% alcohol.