Lane J. Griffin, 19, of 5059 N. State Route 68, Bellefontaine, was charged with operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs and underage consumption as a result of an incident early Saturday morning in the area of Wal-Mart, 2281 S. Main St., Bellefontaine.
Deputies of the Logan County Sheriff’s Office who were on patrol in the area observed his vehicle accelerating rapidly on south Main Street about 1:30 a.m. and then make a sudden right turn into the parking lot of La Palma, 2201 S. Main St., to avoid the red light on south Main Street. The vehicle then turned onto Gunntown Road and into the Wal-Mart parking lot, drove at a high rate of speed diagonally across the parking lot.
Deputies stopped the vehicle in the parking lot, and noted that the occupants inside were moving around furtively. The occupants were ordered out of the vehicle, and an odor of alcoholic beverage was observed coming from the vehicle.
The driver, Griffin, told deputies that he was driving home from Kentucky, and that he had consumed alcoholic beverages several hours earlier in Cincinnati. He submitted to field sobriety tests.
Upon interviewing the other vehicle occupants, it was determined that Griffin was the only occupant who had consumed alcohol that evening.
At the Logan County Jail, the defendant refused to take a urine test. He also was issued citations for reckless operation and failure to obey traffic control devices.
• James L. Neer, 70, of Jackson Center, was charged with OVI Saturday as a result of a previously reported Jan. 23 rollover crash that resulted in him being transported by MedFlight helicopter to Grant Medical Center in Columbus for treatment of serious injuries.
Deputies previously reported he was operating an eastbound sport utility vehicle in the 2600 block of State Route 274 about 7:50 p.m. when he traveled off the right side of the road, overcorrected and began to spin out. The SUV then crossed both lanes of travel and went off the left side of the road, striking a ditch and overturning into a field. His vehicle came to a final rest on its top in the field.
Deputies said they smelled a heavy odor of alcohol on Neer and they also observed a number of beer cans throughout the vehicle.
A search warrant was served for Neer’s medical records from the Columbus hospital, and deputies said the records showed his blood alcohol content level as 0.09. He also was issued a citation for failure to control.
3 transported from S.R. 47 crash during snowy conditions
Driver Allison M. Felty, 54, of DeGraff, along with her 10-year-old and 15-year-old passengers, each were transported by Rushcreek EMS to Mary Rutan Hospital for treatment of minor injuries or possible injuries sustained in a crash Sunday.
Deputies report she was operating a westbound sport utility vehicle in the 7600 block of State Route 47 about 4:30 p.m. during snowy conditions when she traveled off the south side of the road, striking the ditch, before traveling to the top of the embankment and coming to a rest facing southwest.
Damage was heavy to the SUV, which was towed from the scene. All of the occupants were wearing their seat belts. Felty was cited for failure to control.
• Robert A. Crawford, 47, of DeGraff, was transported by Macochee EMS to Mary Rutan Hospital for treatment of minor injuries sustained in a rollover crash Friday morning.
Deputies report he was operating an eastbound SUV about 9 a.m. on County Road 43 near Township Road 198 during snowy conditions. He reportedly drove off the right side of the road and struck a culvert. The SUV then overturned and struck a utility pole.
Damage was heavy to the SUV, which was towed from the scene. Crawford was wearing his seat belt, and was cited for failure to control.
• Chester L. Sosby, 75, of Lakeview, was cited for failure to control as a result of a non-injury crash Friday evening on County Road 87.
Deputies report he was operating an eastbound car near Township Road 84 about 9:30 p.m. when he swerved to avoid debris in the road and then exited the road on the north side, striking a Sprint telephone box. Damage was moderate to the car, and the driver was wearing his seat belt.
• A failure to control citation also was issued to Steven R. Popp, 65, of West Liberty, as a result of a non-injury crash about 5:45 p.m. Sunday.
Deputies report he was operating an eastbound SUV on State Route 540 near County Road 5 during rainy conditions and failed to maintain control while negotiating a curve.
His vehicle went off the left side of the road, coming to rest on top of a culvert.
Damage was heavy to the SUV, which was towed from the scene. Popp and his passenger were wearing their seat belts.