Jury acquits man of vehicular homicide
David Jason Long was acquitted of homicide by vehicle Thursday in Fayette County Court, but found guilty of accidents involving death or serious injury – a conviction that has a mandatory one- to two-year jail term attached. Long was also acquitted of careless driving and driving at unsafe speeds, two of the facets his defense attorney, Martha Bailor, told jurors they needed to find him guilty of for the homicide by vehicle to be true. The charge he was convicted of is essentially defined as leaving the scene of an accident.
Long, 25, of Grindstone was charged with hitting George Tringes Jr. along Route 166 last April 23 around 1 a.m. Tringes, according to testimony, was sitting in Long’s lane of travel wearing a black sleeveless tee-shirt and black jeans. Tringes had a blood-alcohol level of .35 percent.
While Long told jurors that he had about four beers between 2 p.m. and the 1 a.m. accident, he testified he was not intoxicated, and was not speeding.
He and friend Daniel Bogol kept driving after Long hit Tringes, because, Long testified he believed he hit a garbage bag. When Long saw the dent in the front of his car, he testified he went back to the scene and saw a person lying on the road, so he went to a pay phone and called 911.
While he alerted authorities, Long gave the 911 dispatcher a false name, and left before police arrived.
He turned himself in four days later, after Bogol had already contacted police to tell them he thought Long had hit Tringes.
“I understand how the jury reached its verdict, but it’s a tragedy as far as I’m concerned,” said Bailor.
She had asked the panel to acquit Long of all charges in her closing statements.
Bailor argued that Long truly did not realize he hit a person initially because he was driving a full-size car – a 1987 Pontiac 6000. When he saw the dent, and then realized he hit a person, Bailor told jurors Long was afraid.
“He flipped out. He called 911 and gave a false name and false address. He thought his life was over. … He made a mistake,” she said.
“Did he do that because he did a crime and was trying to get away from it? No. He did that because he was terrified,” said Bailor.
She further argued that he fulfilled the law that said he had to stay at the scene of the accident by calling 911 and “eventually” turning himself into police.
“It took him a couple days to do it, not because he did this horrible crime, but because he was terrified.”
First Administrative District Attorney John A. Kopas III argued that there was a “wrecking ball” of evidence to convict Long on all charges.
Kopas told jurors that Long admitted on the stand that he was looking at Bogol talking in the seconds before he hit Tringes, instead of paying attention to the road. Holding a picture of Route 166 up for the panel to see, Kopas said that the stretch of road where Long hit Tringes was “poker straight.”
He also argued that even if Long was not speeding (testimony put his speed between 35 and 40 mph), he was driving too fast for conditions.
“Speeding is not simply a radar issue. … You can still be found in violation if you aren’t driving a vehicle at a safe speed,” argued Kopas.
Despite Bailor’s arguments that Long fulfilled his duty by calling 911 and turning himself in, Kopas argued that the law demanded Long stop and wait for police at the time the accident occurred.
District Attorney Nancy D. Vernon, who stood in for Kopas when the verdict was read, commended his prosecution of the case.
“It was a tough case,” said Vernon.
While Long awaits his May 21 sentencing, Judge Steve P. Leskinen allowed him to remain free on his $100,000 percentage bond.