MOUNT VERNON — A Knox County grand jury indicted a Mount Vernon woman on charges of aggravated vehicular homicide and aggravated vehicular assault following an accident on Aug. 4, where she was is accused of texting while driving.
According to Knox County Prosecutor John Thatcher, Megan J. Peterson, 18, Mount Vernon, was allegedly texting while driving her 1992 Honda southbound on Ohio 13, south of Mount Vernon. Peterson allegedly failed to maintain an assured clear distance ahead from another southbound motor vehicle, attempted to pass the other southbound motor vehicle and then struck a northbound motor vehicle head-on. Peterson’s 23-year-old passenger Keith M. Homstad Jr. was killed in the crash and the 27-year-old driver of the northbound motor vehicle Ryan M. Thogmartin, of Zanesville, sustained severe leg injuries as a result of the accident. Trooper Mason Boyce, Ohio State Highway Patrol, investigated the crash.
Bradley C. Robison, 32, Fredericktown, allegedly assaulted his live-in girlfriend in their residence on Oct. 20. Thatcher said the domestic violence charge filed against Robison is a felony due to his prior domestic violence conviction in Franklin County in 2004. Robison is also accused of felonious assault for allegedly causing the woman serious physical harm requiring medical treatment. An unauthorized use of a motor vehicle charge is included in the indictment because Robison allegedly took his girlfriend’s motor vehicle without permission when he left the residence the night of the incident, according to Thatcher. Patrolman Nick Holdren, Fredericktown Police Department, investigated the case.
Aaron W. Fortune, 21, Mount Vernon, is accused of felony domestic violence for allegedly assaulting his live-in girlfriend in their residence on Oct. 26. Thatcher said the domestic violence charge filed against Fortune is a felony due to his prior domestic violence conviction in Knox County in 2007. Sgt. Roger Monroe, Mount Vernon Police Department, investigated the case.
On Sept. 16, Matthew L. Morrison, 26, Mount Vernon allegedly assaulted a deputy at the Knox County Jail. Morrison is charged with assault on a peace officer. Deputies Lee Eppich, Jason Wilson and Monica Durbin handled the case.
On Oct. 8, Todd L. Kemp, 25, Mount Vernon, was arrested after allegedly transporting 10 pounds of marijuana in his 1993 Toyota Camry. Kemp is charge with possession of marijuana with a specification requesting forfeiture of the motor vehicle used in the commission of the alleged offense. Detective Cpl. Matt Dailey and detectives Craig Feeney and Dave McElroy, MVPD, conducted the investigation leading to Kemp’s arrest.
Kristine J. West, 33, Mount Vernon, is accused of aggravated possession of drugs. On Oct. 6, during a search incident to West’s arrest for operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol, Trooper Morris Johnson, OSHP, allegedly found she had 11 Percocet pills without a prescription.
Jayson S. Horlacher, 30, Mount Vernon, faces two counts of aggravated trafficking in drugs for allegedly selling 100 Methadone tablets to a confidential informant working for the MVPD on July 2, and for selling another 100 Methadone tablets on July 6. Feeney investigated the case.
Jeremy L. Prelipp, 33, Willard, was convicted of attempted unlawful sexual conduct with a minor in Huron County, in 2004, and as a sex offender he must register his address with local law enforcement authorities. According to the indictment, Prelipp last registered his address with the Knox County Sheriff’s Office on Sept. 27. Prelipp is accused of failure to provide change of address notification, however, for allegedly registering an address where he never resided. Deputy Dan Selby investigated the case.
On Oct. 9, the MVPD recovered a 1999 Chevrolet Malibu and a 1994 Ford Ranger stolen from a local car dealership. Using a cell phone left behind with one of the vehicles, Detective McElroy identified a juvenile and Austin L. Tatman, 18, Mount Vernon, as suspects in the alleged thefts. Thatcher said Tatman is accused of two counts of possessing stolen motor vehicles, and the juvenile will be charged in Knox County Juvenile Court.
Brian W. Merritt Jr., 24, Mansfield, faces an indictment charging him with two counts of possessing firearms stolen during a motor vehicle break-in in July. Thatcher said the stolen guns were recovered in August, when Lt. Gary Rohler, KCSO, was notified the stolen guns had been offered for sale or trade at a sporting goods store in another county.
Keith S. Baisden, 39, Howard, is accused of two counts of receiving stolen property for allegedly possessing a stolen horse trailer and a stolen riding lawn mower on Aug. 3. Detective Doug Turpen, KCSO, recovered the stolen property.
On June 23 and 24, Jessica D. Ferenbaugh, 24, Howard, allegedly passed three checks totaling $1,109.45 at a grocery store and another three checks totaling $406.65 at a convenience store, on June 24. Ferenbaugh is charged with one felony count and one misdemeanor count of passing bad checks because she allegedly wrote the checks on a checking account that was closed in March. Patrolman Holdren, FPD, investigated the case.
On Oct. 1, the owner of a West High Street business allegedly caught Larry A. Fox, 26, Mount Vernon, breaking into his building. Fox is charged with breaking and entering. Detective McElroy and Sgt. Monroe, MVPD, investigated the case.
Joseph B. Allen, 18, Hawaii, was indicted on a charge of vandalism. On Oct. 8, Allen allegedly burned four posters in the hallway of a local college dormitory scorching the paint on the wall. Detective Sgt. Roger Brown and Deputy Aaron Phillips, KCSO, investigated the incident.
Arraignments are scheduled for Nov. 12, before Common Pleas Court Judge Otho Eyster.
