A Licking County grand jury indicted a Westerville man on aggravated vehicular homicide charges in connection with a fatal August 2024 crash in Pataskala.
Kenneth F. Hancock, 62, faces two counts of aggravated vehicular homicide and one count of drunken driving, Licking County Common Pleas Court records show. The grand jury indicted him June 24 on the charges.
Police responded around 6:30 p.m. Aug. 31, 2024, to a report of a crash along Etna Parkway in Pataskala, where they found Kendall Bucher, 27, dead at the scene. The Licking County Coroner’s Office found she died from a blunt force injury to the head, according to court records.
Prosecutors allege Hancock caused the crash after he failed to yield after making a left turn into an exit-only area. Bucher crashed into the right side of Hancock’s truck and was thrown from her motorcycle. Another driver, with limited time to react, ran her over, the records state.
After the crash, police allege Hancock told them in an interview that he had been drinking hours before the crash. They also allege he failed field sobriety tests, and they arrested him on suspicion of drunken driving.
In a crash report, prosecutors allege Hancock had enough time to see Bucher to decide whether to yield and that witnesses felt Hancock shouldn’t have turned when he did.
Hancock is next scheduled to appear in court July 14 for a bond hearing.
According to Bucher’s obituary, she graduated from Johnstown High School in 2015 and Cincinnati State Community College in 2020. She enjoyed dancing, horses, video games, baking and camping with her parents, the obituary states.
Advocate reporter Josué Perez can be reached at jhperez@newarkadvocate.com.
This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Westerville man indicted in connection with fatal crash in Pataskala
Reporting by Josué Perez, Newark Advocate / Newark Advocate
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By Josué Perez, Newark Advocate | USA TODAY Network
