Boardman man charged with roommate's death

Staff report

BOARDMAN

A township man faces a charge of aggravated vehicular homicide, a second-degree felony, after police said he ran over and killed his friend.

Max Fitzer, 59, of Macarthur Drive, was arraigned Tuesday in Mahoning County Area Court here and is free on $12,000 bond.

Police responded to the 70 block of Macarthur Drive on Friday night for a report of a man trapped under a vehicle inside a garage, according to a police report.

At the scene, police found the victim, later identified as Eric Bacher, 49, underneath a Chevrolet Blazer with “no signs of life.”

Fitzer, Bacher’s roommate, reportedly told police he and Bacher went out that night, and when they got home, he let Bacher out of the vehicle while he parked the truck in the garage.

Fitzer said he then went inside, where he noticed after a little while that Bacher was not there. When he looked for his roommate, he found him in the garage under the vehicle and then called 911, he said.

During the police interview, police reportedly noticed signs of intoxication exhibited by Fitzer. He was arrested on charges of operating a motor vehicle while impaired and aggravated vehicular homicide.

Court records indicate that Fitzer previously was convicted on two other OVI charges in 1998 and 2004.

Fitzer is scheduled to be back in court March 31 for a preliminary hearing.