Man charged in Amish buggy crash
The man allegedly driving under the influence who hit an Amish buggy, ejecting all seven passengers, in Ashland County was charged with third-degree felony aggravated vehicular assault on Wednesday.
Patrick Muscaro, 47, of West Salem, has been in the Ashland County Jail since Sunday night after he was arrested following the crash on U.S. Route 224 near County Road 581.
He pleaded not guilty to the charge through his attorney, Brett Murner, during a hearing Tuesday afternoon.
Ashland County Prosecutor Christopher Tunnell said in a news release on Wednesday that “as a proximate result of (Muscaro’s) impaired driving caused serious injury to three occupants of a horse drawn buggy,” including Andy Swartzentruber, the driver of the buggy and two minor children, one 2 years old and the other 7 years old.
According to the news release, Muscaro refused roadside and chemical testing after the crash and a search warrant had to be obtained by law enforcement for a blood draw. The warrant was approved by Ashland Municipal Court Judge John Good and the results from the Ohio State Highway Patrol Crime Laboratory were pending.
The other four buggy occupants were not seriously injured in the crash, according to the news release, and were treated at the University Hospitals Samaritan Medical Center.
The Ashland post of the State Highway Patrol is still investigating the crash and Tunnell said in the news release he does intend to present the case to the Ashland County grand jury “when appropriate.” filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Greathouse, 32, is charged with receipt and distribution of child pornography. His home is half a block from an elementary school.
Special Agent Vicki Anderson, spokeswoman for the FBI’s Cleveland office, said Greathouse had an initial hearing Tuesday and is scheduled for a detention hearing next Monday. An attorney for Greathouse could not be immediately identified.
Ravenna Police Capt. Dave Rarrick said police officers responded to a request that they provide assistance at the home at about 8:45 a.m. Monday and were on scene for about three hours.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen B. Burke authorized a search warrant of Greathouse’s home on Oct. 12. Greathouse was at home when investigators arrived and digital evidence seized revealed “numerous videos depicting child pornography,” according to the affidavit.
The Geauga County Sheriff’s Office contacted the FBI last March regarding more than 30 video files that a sheriff ’s deputy downloaded during an investigation from a computer at an IP address traced to Greathouse at his home address, according to the affidavit.