Man found guilty in crash that killed 2 in central Ohio

COLUMBUS (AP) — A man accused of weaving through Ohio traffic on a flat tire and causing a crash that killed two pedestrians in downtown Columbus was convicted today of multiple criminal charges.

A jury found Terrance Trent, 63, guilty of two counts of aggravated vehicular homicide and two counts of vehicular assault. His sentencing was set for Sept. 6. He faces up to 13 years in prison.

Prosecutors say Trent recklessly drove his pickup truck on a flat, running red lights and weaving through traffic for 2 miles before hitting a school bus that struck and killed 21-year-old Stephanie Fibelkorn and 58-year-old William Lewis in December 2014, The Columbus Dispatch reports.

Trent testified Thursday that he panicked while driving through an intersection when his girlfriend began hitting him in the face with a soda can. He said she was upset because he was headed to the home of a woman, who belonged to his church, to fix a plumbing problem.

Witnesses testified during the trial that pieces of rubber flew from the truck’s right front-wheel as the vehicle weaved through traffic. An accident reconstruction expert testified that Trent’s truck was traveling 47 mph when it hit the school bus, the newspaper reported.