Woman smiles in mugshot after causing fatal DUI crash, authorities say

MARION COUNTY, Fla. -- (WKMG) -- An Ocala woman smiled ear-to-ear in her mugshot after causing a crash while driving drunk that killed a 60-year-old woman the day after her birthday, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

Troopers said Angenette Marie Welk was driving her 2011 Chevrolet Avalon east on U.S. Highway 27 around 11:54 a.m. Thursday when she failed to brake in time to avoid hitting the vehicles that were stopped in front of her.

Welk rear-ended a Hyundai Elantra with enough force to sandwich that vehicle between Welk's sedan and a tractor-trailer that was directly in front of it, the crash report said.

The driver of the Elantra, 18-year-old Shiyanne Kroll, suffered minor injuries, while her mother, 60-year-old Sandra Clarkson, who was the passenger, suffered critical injuries and died days later at Orlando Regional Medical Center, according to authorities.

The truck driver was not injured.

Troopers said Welk was arrested at the scene of the crash on charges of DUI, DUI with property damage and DUI with great bodily harm.

Records show that Welk had problems following instructions during a field sobriety test, her breath smelled of alcohol and her blood alcohol content was .172, which is more than twice the legal limit.

Welk told troopers that she crashed because she dropped her phone in the car, the report said.

She has since bonded out of the Marion County Jail.

Clarkson's daughter, Keonna Sciacca, said family members are devastated to lose Clarkson in a crash that happened the day after her birthday and less that a week before Mother's Day.