The Dunn County Sheriff’s Office said that one of its officers died in a crash on Christmas Eve.

On Tuesday, Dunn County correctional officer Jeff Reynolds was going west on U.S. Highway 12/State Highway 29 near Menomonie at 2:44 a.m.

He was on his way to fill a shift at the jail when his vehicle was hit by a northbound car on County Highway E that didn’t stop at a stop sign, according to the sheriff’s office.

The driver of the other car, 40-year-old Mark Sokolowski, has been charged with homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle and is being held at the Eau Claire County Jail.

Three other passengers in Sokolowski’s car, including his wife, were also injured in the crash, according to law enforcement.

According to court documents, Sokolowski blew a 1.5, almost two times the legal limit, an hour-and-a-half after the crash. He told investigators he was drinking at home during a football game and then went to the bar with people after the game, where they kept drinking.

When asked if they thought Sokolowski was okay to drive, one of the people he was with said, “Out of everyone in the vehicle, yes. He was the most sober one.”

“A lesson to be learned for everybody; you might think you’re okay to drive and you have an incident like this and you have no idea how many lives you impact,” said Dunn County Sheriff Kevin Bygd.

Officials say that Reynolds began his career with the sheriff’s office in 2007 and was a “valued member who will be missed greatly.”

Bygd says Reynold’s colleagues responding to the crash were the ones to find him dead on scene. “Obviously pretty somber, it’s going to be tough.”

“Everybody loves him, loved working with him,” Bygd added.

The crash is being investigated by the Wisconsin State Patrol.

Reynolds’ impact was felt throughout the community, with former inmates even paying tribute.

“He was [an] amazing, amazing person,” said former inmate Callee Horner. “He seemed like a rose to me; he acted tough like thorns but in reality, he was just a beautiful person … I know every inmate in the Dunn County Jail right now is mourning.”

According to an obituary, a visitation for Reynolds will be held from 2-5 p.m. Jan. 3 at Hulke Family Funeral Home in Eau Claire.