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Police: Man had three drugs in system when fatal crash occurred
Court documents indicate that three different drugs were in a Brazil man’s system when he struck and killed a California man with his minivan Monday afternoon.
On Tuesday morning, the Putnam County Prosecutor’s Office formally filed four felony charges in Putnam Superior Court against 42-year-old Brian Paul Rosano.
Rosano is accused of causing the death of Freddie L. Smith, 66, Sacramento, Calif., when the latter man’s semi was disabled along Interstate 70 in eastern Putnam County.
Rosano was charged with Level 3 felony leaving the scene of an accident, Level 5 felony driving under the influence of a controlled substance causing death, Level 5 felony reckless homicide and Level 6 felony unlawful possession of a syringe.
According to the probable cause affidavit, multiple motorists had reported a minivan driving recklessly on westbound I-70, and Indiana State Trooper Courtland Woodruff was already in the process of trying to locate the vehicle when the accident occurred.
As he was en route, Woodruff heard both that a man had been struck and killed by the minivan and that the driver, later identified as Rosano, had stopped near the 46-mile marker and was behaving erratically.
Smith’s disabled truck had been repaired by a roadside service and he was reportedly securing his roadside warning devices when the 2009 Chrysler van drove off the roadway and across the white line, striking him.
The van, however, continued westbound until another motorist intervened.
Walter Worthington told Woodruff that he forced his vehicle in front of Rosano’s to get him to stop. Worthington said he then grabbed the keys from the van so Rosano could not escape.
Rosano was taken to Putnam County Hospital for his injuries.
Trooper David Cox went to the hospital and had Rosano perform two field sobriety tests, both of which he failed.
He also consented to blood and urine tests, in which he preliminarily tested positive for benzodiazepine, cocaine and opiates.
In searching the van, Woodruff also located sixteen syringes, a spoon with burnt residue, a glass smoking device and four small pills.
A search of Indiana court records reveals a limited criminal history in the state for Rosano. In early 2018, he was charged in Marion County with possession of cocaine. The charges were, however, dismissed.
A story from The Brazil Times from August 2018 actually paints quite the opposite picture of Rosano, as a man with a history of addiction who came to Clay County to take part in the House of Hope residential rehabilition program near Staunton.
Having been told by a New Jersey judge that his drug-addled life would kill him, Rosano said not only did he get clean in the program, he became a staff member and eventually the director of House of Hope.
In the process, Rosano said, he turned his life around, staying clean since 2002 and even getting married and having children.
Housed at the Putnam County Jail with no bond amount set, Rosano is set to appear before Putnam Superior Court Judge Denny Bridges at 2 p.m. Wednesday.