Conneautville man going to trial on homicide by vehicle while DUI

Feb. 16--VERNON TOWNSHIP -- The driver in a crash that killed a man claimed to police he wasn't drunk, a Pennsylvania State Police trooper testified Wednesday.

"He said, 'I guarantee I'm under the legal limit,'" Trooper Justin Carman testified Tyler J. Lopus as saying to Carman around 1:30 a.m. Aug. 27, 2016, at the crash scene along Peters Road near Saegertown.

Lopus, 25, of 14271 Foster Road, Conneautville, is charged by state police with homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence and related counts in connection with the death of John K. Wagner, 25, of Mingoville following the high speed crash. Lopus was ordered held for trial on all counts by Magisterial District Judge Lincoln Zilhaver of Vernon Township following a more than one-hour preliminary hearing on the charges against him.

Police accuse Lopus of being the driver of a sport utility vehicle that crashed near Saegertown, killing Wagner who was a passenger in SUV. Lopus and a second passenger, Aaron M. Schlaudecker, 26, of Saegertown, were also injured.

Police allege Lopus was driving east on Peters Road at a high rate of speed, lost control of the SUV and it crashed into a tree with the SUV coming back on the road before flipping onto its roof.

Carman, who was the only witness called at Wednesday's hearing, testified a preliminary breath test done on Lopus at the crash scene indicated Lopus' blood alcohol content was 0.104 percent.

Carman testified Lopus' blood alcohol content was 0.112 percent at 2:55 a.m. Aug. 27, 2016, according to Lopus' medical records obtained from UPMC Hamot via a search warrant after the crash.

Under Pennsylvania law, a blood alcohol content of 0.08 percent is considered to be under the influence of alcohol if operating a vehicle.

Lopus also had submitted to chemical testing at the hospital by police at 3:34 a.m. Aug. 27, 2016, at Carman said. That sample was submitted to NMS Labs, an independent testing laboratory, Carman said.

Test results from NMS Labs found Lopus' blood alcohol content was 0.081 percent and 2.1 nanograms per milliliter of THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, the active ingredient in marijuana, within Lopus' bloodstream, Carman said.

Carman testified he interviewed Schlaudecker the day following the crash and Schlaudecker stated the three men had been at a wedding rehearsal dinner prior to the crash and then went to four different friends' and families' locations where there was additional drinking before the trio went to the Owl's Nest tavern in Saegertown. Schlaudecker was unsure of the amount of alcohol they had consumed, Carman said.

Schlaudecker stated that after leaving the Owl's Nest, Lopus was driving the SUV at high speeds on Peters Road and Schlaudecker asked Lopus to slow down, but Lopus did not, Carman testified. Schlaudecker also stated he remembered headlights coming toward the vehicle prior to the crash but couldn't recall more details because of the crash, Carman said.

Carman testified that a state police accident reconstruction specialist estimated the speed of the crash at 88 to 90 miles per hour.

Lopus is charged by state police with homicide by vehicle while DUI and three counts DUI (second offense) for alcohol or controlled substance plus seven traffic summary violations. The seven traffic summary counts filed are two of failure to use seat belt for Lopus as driver and for Lopus allowing a front-seat passenger not to wear a seat belt; and single counts of failing to keep right, speeding, careless driving, reckless driving and lack of financial responsibility. The financial responsibility count charges Lopus with having his insurance canceled for non-payment.

If convicted in Crawford County Court of Common Pleas of the homicide by vehicle while DUI charge, a second-degree felony, Lopus faces a mandatory minimum of three years in prison and a maximum sentence of seven years and a $15,000 fine.

If convicted on the DUI counts, Lopus faces a mandatory minimum sentence of three days in jail and a maximum sentence of six months in jail and a $5,000 fine on each count.

Lopus remains free on $5,000 bond awaiting trial during the June term of county criminal court.

Keith Gushard can be reached at 724-6370 or by email at kgushard@meadvilletribune.com.

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