Kristi Fitch gets 5 years in prison, permanent license suspension for fatal Elyria crash

ELYRIA — A woman who pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide for a fatal 2017 crash near downtown Elyria will serve five years in prison and never will be permitted to drive again. Kristi Fitch, 43, was sentenced March 10 by Lorain County Common Pleas Judge Raymond Ewers. The judge found Fitch not guilty on a second-degree felony count of aggravated vehicular homicide and a misdemeanor operating a vehicle while under the influence charge, both of which the defendant maintained not guilty pleas on. Fitch pleaded guilty to the third-degree felony charge of aggravated vehicular homicide in September and was sentenced on that count alone. She opted for a bench trial, leaving the verdict up to Ewers rather than a jury. She is entitled to credit for 98 days spent behind bars, according to a court journal entry. In addition to the prison time and permanent driver's license suspension, Fitch will be required to pay a mandatory $10,000 fine and $12,646 in restitution to the family of Vicki Hill, 58, who died as a result of Fitch's reckless driving. The fatal crash occurred the morning of Aug. 28, 2017, when Fitch's speeding Buick Century slammed into the back of Hill's stopped Jeep Liberty at West Avenue and Third Street, causing Hill's vehicle to become engulfed in flames. Because of the fire, first responders were impeded as they tried to reach and assist Hill. Both women lived in Elyria and were on their way to work, according to testimony from the trial. An investigation by police previously concluded that Fitch was under the influence of drugs when she wrecked the car, according to testimony. Toxicology reports taken after the crash, which were presented during the trial, showed multiple substances in Fitch's system including tramadol and less than 0.20 nanograms per milliliter of the synthetic opioid carfentanil. But evidence of those substances in a defendant's system cannot alone prove that person was certainly impaired, testified Dr. Luigino Apollonio, chief toxicologist at the Cuyahoga County Regional Forensic Science Lab, under the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's Office. In January, Fitch had her bond revoked after she reportedly tested positive for fentanyl at the county Adult Probation Department while out of jail on bond. J. Anthony Rich, defense attorney for Fitch, said Monday that there was "definitely probable cause" for his client to be charged with the second-degree aggravated vehicular homicide and OVI counts, but he believes the evidence and testimony presented in trial could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that she was under the influence of an illegal narcotic at the time of the crash. "We plead guilty to what I believe the defendant did and what the defendant acknowledged that she did," Rich said. In a sentencing memorandum signed by Lorain County Assistant Prosecutor Chris Pierre, he asked Ewers for a maximum sentence. "Defendant Fitch chose to driver [sic] at excessive speeds of over 90 mph through residential and school areas in Elyria with frequent stops and cross streets, where the speed limit is 35 mph," Pierre wrote. "Ms. Hill had no choice when she was stopped at the intersection of West Avenue and Third Street waiting for the red light to change. Ms. Hill had nowhere to go." Contact Dylan Reynolds at (440) 329-7123 or dreynolds@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @drey1357.