On Dec. 28, a 37-year-old Bainbridge man, who was driving a Jeep Liberty while drunk, was traveling on U.S. 422 in Olon allegedly going east in the westbound lanes. At approximately 12:45 a.m., he hit a Saturn Vue head-on, according to police.

The 44-year-old female passenger in his vehicle at the time of the crash suffered serious injuries. She was transported to Hillcrest Hospital, along with the Jeep driver, and the 20-year-old driver of the Saturn, who was also seriously injured in the wrong-way crash. The Jeep driver was later taken into custody.

According to police at the scene, the driver of the Jeep smelled of alcohol, had bloody hands and face, and exhibited glassy eyes. His BAC measured more twice the legal limit at .184 percent, and he also failed police field sobriety tests. Police charged him with two counts of aggravated vehicular assault, crossing a divided highway illegally, charges of OVI and suspicion of drunk driving.

On Dec. 29, when the Jeep driver appeared in Bedford Municipal Court, bond was set at $20,000. On Jan. 8, a status hearing will be held in the matter, according to court records.

When an individual is injured in a car accident, he or she could find it necessary to seek compensation to help pay for possible resulting lost income and medical expenses. When an accident was not their fault, accident victims could file a personal injury claim against the responsible party. A personal injury attorney could help an accident victim to discover who was at fault, gather evidence in the case, like police reports and eyewitness accounts, and file a claim for compensation on their behalf.

Source: Northeast Ohio Media Group, “Three injured in Solon drunken driving crash”, Ryllie Danylko, Jan. 2, 2015

Source: cleveland.com, “Bainbridge man accused of being drunk, causing wrong-way crash that injured two“, Evan MacDonald, December 31, 2014