A former Ohio State University football player made his first appearance in a Franklin County courtroom June 23 following a fatal weekend crash in Dublin.
Kirk Barton, 40, of Lewis Center, is charged with aggravated vehicular homicide, a second-degree felony, in the June 21 crash. Dublin police said he was intoxicated and driving the wrong way before the crash.
Ethan Perry, 24, died from his injuries.
Franklin County Municipal Court Judge Cynthia Ebner set Barton’s bond at $500,000. As part of his bond, Barton will not be allowed to drive a vehicle and will have to wear an alcohol monitoring ankle bracelet.
Barton was driving a 2025 Ford Raptor pickup truck — with the license plate WISEMEN — west in the eastbound lanes of U.S. 33, also called Bridge Street, according to Franklin County Municipal Court records.
Shortly before 3 a.m., Barton turned his truck around to go the correct way but was driving at “excessive speeds,” court records say.
His pickup struck a 2012 Lexus IS 250 driven by Perry at the intersection of Bridge and Franklin streets, police said. The truck continued another 900 feet before coming to a stop, court records say.
Perry died at the scene.
Barton had a “blank stare” and glassy, bloodshot eyes when police arrived at the scene. He admitted to drinking alcohol prior to driving, according to court records.
“Mr. Barton was unable to answer basic questions about the evening and the crash,” court records say.
According to court records, Barton has several other traffic violations, including at least two prior speeding tickets and two arrests for suspicion of OVI.
In 2017, he pleaded guilty to reckless operation and failure to stop after initially being charged with OVI. He received a fine and a 180-day suspension of his driver’s license.
In 2010, Barton was also arrested on suspicion of OVI and the charge was dismissed after paying a small fine for another traffic violation.
Who is Kirk Barton?
Barton was an offensive lineman for the Buckeyes from 2003-2007 and started at right tackle for four seasons.
He earned first-team All-American honors and was team captain for the 11-2 Big Ten championship-winning Ohio State team in 2007 before being drafted by the Chicago Bears in the seventh round of the NFL draft.
Reporter Bethany Bruner can be reached at bbruner@gannett.com or on Bluesky at @bethanybruner.dispatch.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Former OSU player accused of driving wrong way, under influence before fatal Dublin crash
Reporting by Bethany Bruner, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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