EVANSVILLE — Citing what she called puzzling toxicology results, Vanderburgh County Prosecutor Diana Moers on Tuesday dropped charges against a man who had been involved in a head-on collision that killed a 31-year-old Evansville woman.
Malik Latrel Stafford, 24, of Louisville, Ky., was accused of causing the death of Maria Guetling, who left behind a husband and two young children, one 4 and the other 6 months old.
Stafford faced one count of Causing Death When Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated, and one count of Causing Serious Bodily Injury when Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated, the latter charge because one of Guetling’s children was injured in the crash.
Stafford had admitted to smoking marijuana at some point the day prior to the fatal crash, and initial saliva and urine testing was positive for THC, Moers told the Courier & Press.
Then additional blood testing was conducted and the case against Stafford collapsed.
Multiple tests of Stafford’s blood turned up nothing, Moers said.
“There’s nothing in the blood,” the prosecutor said. “There’s no metabolite. We can’t prove impairment if his blood is completely clean. We even sent the testing off to a (Indiana State Department of Toxicology) lab to see if it was anything synthetic that wasn’t picking up on the test.
“There’s a chance that (Stafford) smoked something that wasn’t marijuana at all or any other drug and just thought he did. I don’t know.”
The Vanderburgh County Prosecutor’s Office has grappled with the case and the test results for months, Moers said.
“We’ve literally exhausted every lab test possible, and there’s just nobody that’s going to testify that he can be impaired from his blood,” she said.
“His saliva and his urine showed signs of THC, but it wasn’t in his blood. I don’t know how that’s even possible.”
It was a head-on collision
Guetling had one of her sons secured in a car seat with her at the time of the accident on June 16, according to the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office. The child sustained minor injuries and was transported to a local hospital for treatment.
The wreck occurred on the 6700 block of North St. Joseph Avenue, north of Wimberg Road. Deputies found a gray GMC SUV with significant front-end damage off the west side of the roadway. They also found a white Freightliner box truck, driven by Stafford, overturned and blocking the roadway.
The box truck was traveling north on North St. Joseph when it left the right side of the roadway. The driver overcorrected, crossing into the southbound lane and colliding with the GMC SUV driven by Guetling.
A sheriff’s office news release issued at the time said Stafford’s truck “crossed the center line and struck a southbound SUV (driven by Guetling) head-on.”
Law enforcement and prosecutors thought at first that they had the evidence needed to convict Stafford.
“A sheriff’s deputy trained as a certified drug recognition expert evaluated Stafford at the hospital and observed multiple signs of cannabis impairment, including bloodshot eyes, drooping eyelids, poor coordination, disorientation, and a rapid heart rate,” the VCSO statement said.
“A urine screen and an oral swab confirmed the presence of cannabis. A blood sample was collected and later sent to the Indiana Department of Toxicology for evaluation.”
Guetling’s sudden and unexpected death at just 31 years old was a crushing loss for her family, who posted a GoFundMe appeal afterward to help with expenses.
The GoFundMe fundraising appeal, posted by Guetling’s sister, Rachel Bulso, reported raising $67,100 to meet a goal of $70,000.
Moers said in a written statement Tuesday that the case “is one that will stick with us forever because of the tragic nature of the crash.”
“I pray for peace and healing for all of those affected by this crash and the tragic loss of loving wife and mother Maria Guetling,” she said.
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Charges in vehicle death of 31-year-old woman to be dropped
Reporting by Thomas B. Langhorne, Evansville Courier & Press / Evansville Courier & Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
