BY KEITH EPPS

A man who showed up at a North Stafford church late Tuesday apparently had a lot more than communion.

Police said the intoxicated man damaged several signs in the church parking lot, drove through a guardrail and ended up passed out and stuck in a ditch by the time Stafford Deputy Ron Jones arrived at 11:19 p.m.

Taylor Glenn Herchik, 23, who has addresses in Ohio and Quantico, was eventually awakened and charged with driving while intoxicated, hit and run, and refusing to take a breath test.

Sheriff's spokesman Bill Kennedy said Jones went to Mount Ararat Baptist Church in response to a report of a disabled vehicle.

Jones found a green Ford Mustang in a ditch with heavy front-end and driver's-side damage.

The driver was passed out inside the vehicle, which was still running. Jones tapped on the window a number of times before getting the driver's attention.

Jones smelled a strong odor of alcohol after getting the driver out of the vehicle, Kennedy said.

The investigation revealed that the driver had entered the church parking lot and struck a number of metal and wooden signs.

A trail of debris from the vehicle led from the parking lot to the ditch, Kennedy said.

Herchik was placed in the Rappahannock Regional Jail under a $1,500 bond.

Keith Epps: 540/374-5404
Email: kepps@freelancestar.com