Middletown woman pleads guilty in OVI crash into house that injures 83-year-old resident

ajc.com

Credit: Jen Balduf

Credit: Jen Balduf

A Middletown woman is facing up to 1½ years in prison for an OVI crash into a house in February that seriously injured an 83-year-old Franklin Twp. woman who lived in the house.

Elena Reagan Eggleton, 20, pleaded guilty Wednesday before Warren County Common Pleas Judge Timothy Tepe to vehicular assault, assault of a police officer, harassment with a bodily substance and a misdemeanor count of OVI, which was a second offense in 10 years, according to court documents.

As part of her plea, the vehicular assault charge was reduced from aggravated vehicular assault and a misdemeanor criminal damaging count was dismissed.

She is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 30.

Eggleton was driving a 2011 Ram 1500 about 11:30 p.m. Feb. 16 northwest on Ohio 123 near McLean/Robinson Vale roads when she drove off the right side of the state route and struck a fire hydrant, wires connected to a utility pole and a cable box, according to a crash report filed by the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

The pickup then went across McLean Road and struck a stop sign, traveled over more wires and then crashed into the front of a house in the 5500 block of Ohio 123, seriously injuring an 83-year-old woman inside, the report stated.

“Substantial damage was done to the property including structural damage. A victim was in the residence and was subsequently hospitalized,” read a criminal complaint filed in Franklin Municipal Court.

Eggleton was arrested at the scene on an OVI charge when she “became irate, kicked a trooper, repeatedly kicked the back of a patrol car and attempted to spit on a trooper,” according to an incident summary filed by the highway patrol.

Troopers reported that a blood test measured Eggleton’s blood-alcohol level at .277, which is more than three times Ohio’s .08 legal driving limit.

In addition to a potential prison term, Eggleton is facing a mandatory fine up to $1,625, a driver’s license suspension for one to seven years and up to two years of post-release control to be overseen by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation & Correction’s Adult Parole Authority.

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