WAUSEON — A man who pleaded guilty to five counts of vehicular manslaughter after a March crash that killed a family of five in Clinton Township will serve no time in jail, a Fulton County judge ruled Wednesday.
Zane Hull, 22, was first charged in late July with the second-degree misdemeanor charges — misdemeanors, not felonies, because no alcohol nor drugs were involved in the crash. He pleaded not guilty first in early October, then entered plea agreements on all charges later that month.
“It was just a tragic accident,” said Steven Spitler, Mr. Hull’s defense attorney. “He had no intent to blow a stop sign and kill five people.”
The family of five had been driving south on County Road 14 near County Road H just before midnight on March 26 when Mr. Hull, of Delta, Ohio, failed to yield the right of way, colliding with the family’s car, according to a report from the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
The morning after the accident, two pairs of tire tracks were still deeply etched in the mud off one corner of the intersection.
Two members of the family – Xavier Brown, 25, and one of his sons, Deklin Jankowski, 9 – were pronounced dead at the crash scene. The family’s two younger children, Aurora Michael, 7, and Riggs Brown, 1, were taken to Mercy Health St. Vincent Medical Center, where they died the next day.
Muriel Michael, 28, the mother and driver of the family car, was the last one alive – albeit in a coma. She died at ProMedica Toledo Hospital one day after the last two children.
Ms. Michael and Mr. Brown, both of Wauseon, were engaged, and had had family portraits taken with their three children just hours before the crash.
“He feels horrible about this accident,” Mr. Spitler said of Mr. Hull. “He even sought out grief counseling. He’s taken the matter seriously. It’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to him, and he feels horrible for the family members of the family that died.”
After a judge accepted Mr. Hull’s guilty pleas on Wednesday, he ordered the young man to pay a $500 fine per charge, for a total fine of $2,500, plus several hundred dollars in court costs. Though he received no jail sentence, a total of 15 months in jail was reserved in case Mr. Hull violated the law again in the next year.
Mr. Hull’s driver’s license was also suspended for one year beginning Thursday, with limited privileges granted for employment, medical needs, school, and on Sundays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. to shop for necessities.
“My client is well-known in the community, respected,” Mr. Spitler said. “He’s 22 years old, has a full-time job, and is working on his bachelor’s degree as well. He’s never even had a prior traffic ticket.”
Now on probation, Mr. Hull must pay all fines and court costs by March 14, 2023, or else face a hearing and potential new sanction.
“In a nutshell, it was a tragic event all around,” Mr. Spitler said.
Luke Jones, the assistant Fulton County prosecutor assigned to the case, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday.
First Published December 8, 2022, 6:23 p.m.
