HEARTFELT TRIBUTE
Roses are left at the scene where three women were killed and one was injured Tuesday after their car struck a telephone pole on Library Road in Bethel Park.
The 27-year-old man killed Monday when his car crossed into oncoming traffic on I-376 outside the Squirrel Hill Tunnel had been previously cited for speeding and reckless driving, court records show.
Burak Ulus of Pittsburgh pleaded guilty to speeding and driving the wrong way in 2014, and pleaded guilty to failing to drive at a safe speed and obey traffic lights in 2015. He was also charged with reckless driving in 2015 but was found not guilty.
Mr. Ulus died after his car crossed through the no-traffic area on the outbound side of the Squirrel Hill Tunnel and struck a westbound car approaching the tunnels about 8 p.m., accordingto Pennsylvania State Police.
He crossed into oncoming traffic immediately after he exitedthe tunnels, before the beginning of a concrete barrier that separates the lanes. Investigators said Mr. Ulus was on the wrong side for just a few seconds before the head-on collision.
The other driver, Joyce Grimm, 60, of Penn Hills, was in stable condition Tuesday, Trooper Melinda Bondarenka said.
Investigators have not determined whether Mr. Ulus intentionally crossed into oncoming traffic, Trooper Ryan Cohen wrote in a press release.
Trooper Bondarenka said police can’t say exactly what led them to believe the incident may have been intentional but said police labeled the crash an aggravated assault because of witness statements, physical evidence andMr. Ulus’ state of mind.
“There are a few more details to the story, but we can’t release that right now,” she said.
Mr. Ulus did not know Ms. Grimm and she appears to be a random victim, she said.