EAU CLAIRE, Wis. – A Buffalo County man was sentenced to 15 years in prison for a 2023 wreck in which he rear-ended another car and killed an Eau Caire woman. Kenneth Van Meter, now 42, of Mondovi, was speeding and drunk, police said. The sentence also specified 10 additional years of supervised probation. In the accident, 56-year-old Tammy Jarecki was stopped at the light at East Clairemont Avenue and Fairfax Street. Her vehicle burst into flames. This was about 10:45 p.m. on a Thursday in May. At the scene, police said, Van Meter was too drunk toknow he was in Eau Claire. He told officers he was 25 miles away in Menomonie.
Van Meter. Speeding and drunk, police said.