Deputy pleads not guilty in fatal traffic stop shooting

A sheriff’s deputy who fatally shot a man following a traffic stop last year pleaded not guilty to voluntary manslaughter.

Carroll County deputy Jacob Baker, 29, entered his plea Thursday during a brief court appearance. He was released on a personal recognizance bond, and his attorney has said she's confident a review will show Baker acted reasonably and legally to protect himself.

Baker fatally shot Robert Sikon III, 41, of Carrollton, on Nov. 16. The vehicle was being driven by Sikon’s fiancee, who has said the two men “tussled” before Sikon ran and was shot in the back.

Authorities have said an arrest warrant had been issued in September 2019 for Sikon, who was accused of failing to pay child support.

Baker faces three to 11 years in prison if convicted. He had been on paid administrative leave following the incident, but his status with the sheriff's department was unclear Friday.

Man wanted for 2018 slaying arrested in West Virginia

A man wanted for a 2018 slaying in Ohio was arrested in West Virginia during a traffic stop, authorities said.

Deputies found Duane Eugene Griffin Jr., of Akron, in the passenger seat of a car when they stopped the vehicle for a violation in Jackson County on Wednesday morning, Jackson County Chief Deputy Ross Mellinger told WSAZ-TV.

Deputies said Griffin gave them a false name during the stop, leading them to bring him and the driver, Stephan Green, also from Akron, in for further investigation. They found Griffin's real identity when they took his fingerprints, the news outlet reported.

Deputies also seized drugs and a firearm they said could have been used in the 2018 homicide of Jordan Hopson.

Griffin has been booked on drug charges stemming from the traffic stop. Authorities also have begun the process necessary to extradite him back to Ohio to be charged in Jordan's slaying, Mellinger said.

It was not immediately clear if Green was also charged.

Infant, her mother killed in fourvehicle crash on interstate

A four-vehicle crash on an interstate highway in southwestern Ohio has left a woman and her infant daughter dead and three others injured.

The crash on westbound Interstate 70 in Monroe Township occurred around 6:40 p.m. Thursday, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

Two semitrailers and a pickup truck were traveling in the left lane, while an SUV was in the right lane. As the vehicles approached a construction area, three slowed down, but one of the semitrailers rear-ended the pickup truck.

The impact pushed the pickup into the back of the other semitrailer, which then struck the back of the SUV.

Tonya Beachy, 25, of Homeworth, who was a passenger in the pickup, was pronounced dead at the scene. Her 7-month-old daughter, Ellie Beachy, was taken to to a hospital but died there a short time later.

The pickup's driver, Erik Beachy, and the two semitrailer drivers — James Gobble, 49, of Lexington, in northern Ohio, and Dorcella Washington, 60, of Columbus — were being treated for injuries that were not considered lifethreatening. The SUV driver, Hugo Barth IV, 54, of New Providence, New Jersey, was not injured.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation.

Associated Press, Advance Ohio Media reports