Amherst Twp. man pleads guilty in 2025 incident where victim fell out car window and died

ELYRIA — An Amherst Township man has pleaded guilty in a 2025 drunken driving incident when a passenger fell out his car window and died. Jacob Farley, 21, pleaded guilty Monday in Lorain County Common Pleas Court to two counts of aggravated vehicular homicide and one count each of aggravated vehicular assault and vehicular assault, all felonies, plus three counts of driving under the influence and one count each of falsification and obstructing official business, all misdemeanors. Because a number of the charges merge for sentencing under state law, the Lorain County Prosecutor's Office elected to have Farley sentenced on one count each of aggravated vehicular homicide and one count each of DUI and falsification. Judge Chris Cook ordered a presentencing investigation ahead of sentencing on Dec. 7. He told Farley he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of at least 2 years, and a lifetime driver's license suspension. Farley, whom defense attorney Maggie Lieux said has been in the Lorain County Jail for the last four months without bond, was released on a $25,000 cash bond on the condition he wear an alcohol monitor. He had been held after failing an alcohol screening test while out on bond. Cook warned Farley that if he tested positive for alcohol prior to sentencing, he would be re-arrested and jailed. "While on the one hand I am wishing you well over the next couple of weeks, I am also suggesting that you don't tempt me, you don't push me or play games" while out on bond, Cook told Farley.Domanic Kinder-Ritz, 20, fell out of Farley's car on Quarry Road on Sept. 21, 2025. He had been hanging out of the passenger-side window when Farley tried to make a left-hand turn. Kinder-Ritz hit the ground and suffered fatal injuries. Lorain County Sheriff's deputies responded to a report of "a man bleeding in the roadway" and found Kinder-Ritz there. Testing showed Farley's blood-alcohol concentration was 0.198, or nearly 2½ times the legal limit to drive, and he had recently used marijuana, according to the Prosecutor's Office, which said human error and speed also were factors. Contact Bruce Bishop at 440-284-0113 or bishop1212@gmail.com. Contact Dave O'Brien at 440-329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com.