Fort Meade man arrested for DUI drove to a bar after hitting, killing girlfriend, deputies say

Booking image for Charles Polen (Polk County Sheriff's Office)

Polk County deputies said they arrested a Fort Meade man for DUI manslaughter after he struck and killed his girlfriend with his vehicle.

Deputies arrested 40-year-old Charles Polen on Saturday night. Around 11:22 p.m., a 911 caller said she may have struck a pedestrian on Scenic Highway about a mile east of School Bus Road. However, deputies later determined the caller’s vehicle did not hit the victim.

Investigators said, according to Polen, the couple was drinking at a bar when his girlfriend, 40-year-old Deborah Hershberger, left on foot.

Deputies said Polen’s blue 2002 Dodge Neon was in the parking lot with front-end damage and blood on the car. They said he admitted to getting into the car after Hershberger left to search for her. 

During the search, Polen said he was heading east on Scenic Highway when he thought he struck an animal, “but when he turned around, he saw a person lying in the road, and believed it was Hershberger,” according to a Polk County Sheriff’s Office news release.

Deputies said he didn’t check on the victim, but instead, drove back to the bar, then walked to the crash scene to see if Hershberger was the person he struck.

Investigators said Polen was impaired, and he was arrested for leaving the scene of a crash, DUI manslaughter and driving without a license.