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An 18-year-old was charged on Wednesday in connection with a freeway drag race that killed a man and critically injured a woman.
Brandon Smith, 18, was charged with involuntary manslaughter, aggravated vehicular homicide and aggravated vehicular assault, 10TV's Kevin Landers reported.
While Smith's car never hit another vehicle, prosecutors said that his act of street racing contributed to the crash, leading to the charges.
ccording to Franklin County prosecutor Ron O'Brien, Smith was behind the wheel of a Camaro that was drag racing along Interstate 70.
The driver of the other car, George Staton lost control of his car and cross the median and crashed into another vehicle.
Staton, 30, was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash.
The driver of the car that was struck, Monica Durban, was critically hurt in the crash. Durban, 20, was in a coma and on life support and is recovering from her injuries, 10TV News reported.
According to police, not only was Staton drag racing moments before the crash, but he was also legally drunk. Police records obtained by 10TV News show there were four witnesses to the crash: Staton's wife, his neighbor, his cousin and the driver Staton was racing.
Staton's wife and neighbor told investigators that the other man called Staton and challenged him to a race. When asked about the race the driver told police that his car "started breaking loose, so (he) let off the gas," allowing Staton to speed past him.
Staton's neighbor, who was following behind with Staton's wife, said that "after the race was over they both hit their brakes to slow down." The neighbor said it was "5 or 10 seconds later" that Staton lost control and crossed the median, 10TV's Glenn McEntyre reported.
Stay with 10TV News and 10TV.com for continuing coverage.
