Man to serve jail time for fatal crash

LANCASTER — A night-shift worker who admitted taking prescription medications before dozing off at the wheel while driving home and causing a fatal head-on crash in Lancaster has been sentenced to 15 days in jail.

Fairfield County Municipal Court Judge James A. Fields sentenced Paul D. Hazlett Jr. after he pleaded no contest to vehicular homicide for causing the death of Larry W. Foor on Sept. 18. The offense is a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by a maximum of six months in jail.

Foor was driving a Chevy Malibu west on West Fair Avenue near Becks Knob Road when an eastbound Ford F-150 pickup driven by Hazlett crossed left of center, struck the Malibu and forced it off the right side of the road. Foor, 73, of Lancaster, was pronounced dead at the scene. Hazlett, 33, of Lancaster, was treated for minor injuries.

Fields sentenced Hazlett in May and modified the sentence in June, allowing Hazlett to serve the jail time on weekends this month and in September to accommodate his work schedule. Hazlett cannot afford to lose his dock worker job at Ward Trucking in Columbus because he supports his wife and child, his attorney, Jason A. Price, told the judge in a court filing.

Fields also sentenced Hazlett to three years of non-reporting probation and 30 days of community service, and suspended his driving privileges until May 2022, except for driving to and from work, counseling, medical appointments and church.

Hazlett crossed the center line multiple times before the crash around 8:30 a.m., a witness driving behind the pickup told the State Highway Patrol. Hazlett told troopers that besides his anti-acidreflux medication, he had taken a prescribed antidepressant the night before and a prescribed anti-anxiety medication about a half-hour before he clocked out of work between 7:30 and 8 a.m. He said he was dozing off while driving home because he had worked long hours, according to court records.