Driver charged after man dies, 3 injured in crash
A Yellow Springs man was killed in a crash Thursday evening that injured three others, including two children. The person at-fault according to investigators now faces charges.
It was one of two crashes Thursday in Clark County in which Careflight medical helicopters were called to the scene.
The fatality crash was reported around 6:10 p.m. at U.S. 68 at Fairfield Pike in Springfield Twp., according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol’s Springfield Post.
Preliminary investigation determined that Katharine D. Holder, 38, of Enon, was driving a 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee east on Fairfield Pike when she ran a red light at the intersection with U.S. 68 and crashed into a 2012
Toyota Tundra headed north on U.S. 68 driven by 44-yearold Ryan Botkin of Yellow Springs, troopers said.
The impact caused the Jeep to go off the left side of the road, and the Toyota went off the right side before overturning.
Botkin was flown to Springfield Regional Medical Center, where he died of his injuries, troopers said.
An adult passenger in the Toyota also was taken to Springfield Regional, but with serious injuries, and two children in the Toyota, a 12-year-old and 8-year-old, suffered serious injuries and were taken to Dayton Children’s Hospital.
Holder was not injured. Holder faces second-degree felony aggravated vehicular homicide and third-degree felony aggravated vehicular assault charges, according to court records.
According to a statement of facts from the highway patrol, Holder “had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage emitting from her person and her eyes were bloodshot and glossy.” The woman was unsteady on her feet and her speech was slurred, but she denied any alcohol consumption.
A field sobriety test showed signs of impairment, according to the document, and Holder refused a breathalyzer test. Per a warrant, Holder underwent a blood draw. She was arrested Thursday and arraigned Friday.
The other serious crash was reported at 3:50 p.m. on South Charleston Pike in Madison Twp. near the Madison County border.
It is not clear how many people were injured in that crash or what led to it.