Lorain, OH : Driver indicted in fatal Lorain crash on Monday August 29, 2016

A 21-year-old Lorain woman was charged with two counts of aggravated vehicular homicide stemming from a crash that left a man dead, according to court records.

Cleonna Dunseth of South Central Drive also was charged with aggravated vehicular assault, vehicular assault, driving under suspension, two counts of drunken driving and operating a car under the influence of marijuana, according to an indictment filed in Lorain County Common Pleas Court.

The charges stem from the Jan. 15 crash that claimed the life of pedestrian Mel Rush, 62, of Lorain, and hurt another woman as they were walking near the intersection of West 23rd Street and Oakdale Avenue in Lorain, according to police.

About 9:45 p.m. that night, Dunseth was driving a white 2001 Chevrolet Malibu heading west on West 23rd Street in Lorain, according to police.

At the intersection with Oakdale Avenue, Dunseth failed to stop for a posted stop sign and entered the intersection. The Chevrolet collided with a black 1996 Lincoln Town Car driven by Michael Keener, 58, and headed south on Oakdale Avenue, according to a report from the Lorain Police Department’s traffic division.

The Lincoln continued south, running off the road and striking a sign at the southwest corner of the intersection.

The Chevrolet then ran off the road and struck Rush and Antonia Catalano, 28, who were walking westbound at the southeast corner of the intersection, according to the police report. Rush and Catalano had left Rudy’s Market II, 523 W. 23rd St., moments before the crash.

The car also hit a tree before coming to rest in the treelawn west of the intersection.

Rush had his back to the crash; the impact of the car launched him into the air and he came to rest in the road on West 23rd Street, police said.

“I don’t think Mel Rush even knew what hit him; he just had massive internal injuries from the car coming after him,” said Officer Kyle Gelenius, who works as a crash reconstructionist for the Lorain traffic bureau.

Catalano fled the scene and was taken by a family member for treatment at the University Hospitals Amherst Health Center. She suffered a broken leg, cuts and scratches, according to police.

Keener was not hurt in the crash. The cars sustained severe, disabling damage.

Source :
Driver indicted in fatal Lorain crash