The woman killed in a Highway 310 crash earlier this week was identified Wednesday as Rawlyn Strizich, a former Billings Police Department evidence clerk who was at the center of scandal seven years ago.
Carbon County Sheriff Josh McQuillan said Strizich was the driver in a two-vehicle crash reported at 8:15 a.m. Oct. 20 on Highway near mile marker 41.
Strizich, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was driving a Ford Fusion south on Highway 310 when she drifted into an oncoming lane and struck a northbound Kenworth truck head-on, according to the Montana Highway Patrol.
The driver of the truck, a 67-year-old man from Bridger, suffered minor injuries.
In 2018, Strizich made headlines when she was fired after stealing more than 1,000 pills collected as police evidence in more than 130 cases. She later pleaded guilty to one felony charge in connection with the case.
The internal investigation led to one of the biggest scandals to hit the Billings Police Department in recent memory. Investigators discovered three Billings police officers-- Paul LaMantia, Matthew Edwards and Clint Anglin—had sex with Strizich while on duty or on police property.
The city of Billings resisted naming the three police officers for more than two years. Q2 News and The Billings Gazette jointly filed a lawsuit to force the release of their identities.
