Northeast Ohio couple killed June 9 in crash in Kentucky; Cincinnati man facing criminal charges

A Cincinnati man is in custody on multiple felonies for allegedly driving drunk and killing a Northeast Ohio couple in a high-speed traffic crash in northern Kentucky on June 9. Joshua Turza, 32, of Avon, and Meagan Spurgeon, 30, of North Olmsted, died in the crash, according to news reports and their published obituaries. The Lexington Herald-Leader newspaper reported that just after 11 p.m. June 9, 47-year-old Jody Miller of Cincinnati was driving his 2017 BMW at speeds of more than 150 mph on Interstate 75 in Grant County, northern Kentucky, when Kentucky State Police tried to pull him over. A trooper first clocked Miller's car going 132 mph in a 70 mph zone, the newspaper reported. Miller accelerated away, up to 153 mph, and the trooper halted the pursuit. Soon after, Miller's car rear-ended a 2013 Kia carrying Turza and Spurgeon, and the Kia burst into flames, the newspaper reported. Turza and Spurgeon died at the scene. Miller's BMW rolled over onto its roof and he had to be pulled from the car. When he was, troopers immediately smelled alcohol on him, according to the Herald-Leader. Miller allegedly told troopers he was driving home to Cincinnati after spending the weekend in North Carolina, stopped at a restaurant in Knoxville, Tennessee, and had at least two alcoholic drinks. He remembered little else about the crash, according to the Herald-Leader. Miller is charged with two counts of vehicular homicide when under the influence of alcohol, and one count each of wanton endangerment and fleeing or evading police, all felonies. He also faces misdemeanor charges of DUI and speeding more than 26 mph over the limit, according to the Herald-Leader. Media reports said Miller was being held in a Kentucky jail on $1 million bond. According to his obituary, Turza was a soccer and Disney fan and dog owner. Spurgeon was the mother of a daughter, AnnaStella, and a registered nurse at Cleveland Clinic Lutheran Hospital, according to her published obituary. A funeral Mass for Turza is at 11 a.m. today at Our Lady Queen of Peace Church on Erie Street in Grafton. Calling hours are from 9 to 11 a.m. Memorial donations in Turza's name are requested to The Friendship Animal Protective League, 8303 Murray Ridge Road, Elyria, Ohio 44035. A memorial visitation and celebration of life for Spurgeon was held Saturday in Medina. Waite & Son Funeral Home in Medina handled the arrangements. Memorial donations in Spurgeon's name were requested to Oasis of Hope Pregnancy & Parenting Support Center, P.O. Box 1827, Medina, Ohio, 44258. A GoFundMe campaign titled "Fund Meagan's Funeral and Annastella's Trust" has been set up. As of 4 p.m. Wednesday it had collected $5,400 of its $20,000 goal.