North Pole woman sentenced to 17 years for DUI crash that killed Fort Wainwright soldier

A North Pole woman will serve 17 years in prison for a DUI crash that killed an on-duty Fort Wainwright soldier and injured other motorists near the base in July 2024.

Superior Court Judge Brent Bennett sentenced Brianna Raquel Lapp, 33, on March 16 to 22 years with five suspended and seven years of probation after she pleaded guilty to felony manslaughter, one count of third-degree assault, and driving under the influence. The DUI count carried a maximum sentence of one year under Alaska law, and that full year was imposed as part of the agreement.

Pfc. Arturo Alejandro Gomez, 29, an infantryman with the 11th Airborne Division's "Arctic Wolves," was guarding the installation's main gate on July 22, 2024, when Lapp drove erratically along Gaffney Road, striking multiple vehicles and barriers before hitting Gomez, who was on duty at the Fort Wainwright main gate. Passengers in other vehicles were injured and a chain-link fence at a construction site was damaged. She stopped only when she struck a jersey barrier and Gomez. A breath test nearly two hours later registered her blood alcohol content at 0.299 percent.

A Fairbanks grand jury indicted Lapp on August 1, 2024, on second-degree murder, manslaughter, two counts of third-degree assault, two counts of leaving an accident without assisting injured people, and two counts of reckless endangerment. The Fairbanks District Attorney's Office also charged her with one count of driving under the influence. The plea deal narrowed the case to manslaughter, one assault count, and the DUI, dropping the murder charge and the leaving-the-scene and reckless-endangerment counts.