Man with no driver’s license who was involved in fatal Butler County crash sentenced to prison
Nov. 5—A man who Butler County Sheriff’s investigators say is from Mexico and did not have a valid driver’s license in June when he was behind the wheel in a fatal crash has been sentenced to prison.
The crash happened about 3 a.m. June 8 on U.S. 127 south of Harris Road in Milford Twp.
Leodegario Cruz Ortiz, 22, was driving when the vehicle went left of center and struck a car driven by Christopher Vanzant, 40, of Fountain City, Ind. Vanzant was pronounced dead at the scene.
Cruz Ortiz and a passenger were taken by medical helicopter for treatment of injuries. He was booked into the county jail days later and has been held in lieu of a $250,000 bond.
In August, Cruz Ortiz was indicted by a Butler County grand jury for aggravated vehicular homicide on different subsections of the law, with one alleging he did not have a valid license. He pleaded guilty in October to first-degree aggravated vehicular homicide in Butler County Common Pleas Court.
On Monday, Judge Greg Stephens sentenced Cruz Ortiz to a mandatory 10 years in prison with an additional sentence of up to five years that could be imposed depending on his behavior while incarcerated.
In June, Butler County Sheriff’s Investigators said Cruz Ortiz is in the U.S. illegally.
