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Benassi back in jail
GREENCASTLE -- A Greencastle woman convicted of reckless homicide in 2008 is back in jail, accused of violating the terms of her probation.
Tonya M. Benassi, 37, was convicted on Dec. 4, 2008 and sentenced to four years at the Indiana Department of Correction, with 2 1/2 years executed and 1 1/2 years on probation.
Benassi was released from prison and began her term of probation on July 20, 2009. In a petition to revoke Benassi's probation, Putnam County Adult Probation Officer Cody Tillison alleged that Benassi violated her probation in three ways.
First, Tillison's report said, Benassi was ordered to not possess, use or consume any legal or illegal intoxicating substance.
"The defendant was given a urine drug screen on Nov. 10, 2010," Tillison's report said. "This officer received the results of that urine drug screen on Nov. 17, 2010, and they showed the defendant tested positive for THC-marijuana."
Additionally, Benassi was ordered to maintain employment of at least 25 hours per week. Until employment was secured, the terms of her probation stated that she was to perform 20 hours of community service per week.
"The defendant lied to community corrections and myself, reporting that she obtained a job at Wendy's in Terre Haute, and therefore did not do her 20 hours a week community service," Tillison's report said. "This officer contacted that Wendy's, and they reported that (Benassi) had an interview but was not hired as of the filing date of this petition."
Third, Benassi was ordered to complete psychological and drug evaluation, followed by a treatment program. Benassi completed the evaluation, Tillison said, but had not attended a treatment session since July 29.
A warrant for Benassi's arrest was issued Monday, and she was taken into custody late Tuesday. An officer at the Putnam County Jail, where Benassi is being held without bond, said Benassi's initial hearing will likely not take place until Monday.
According to court documents, Benassi has served 910 days of her sentence, and a maximum of 550 days could be reinstated if she is found guilty of violating her probation.
Benassi was convicted of Class C felony reckless homicide in connection with an October 2007 automobile accident that killed her husband Tracy, 34.
Police reports said Tracy Benassi was driving a car in which Tonya Benassi was a passenger on Oct. 12, 2007, when the couple got into an argument. As a result, court documents said, the vehicle left a raised roadway and plummeted onto a set of railroad tracks below.
The Benassis were both taken to an Indianapolis hospital via helicopter, and Tracy Benassi died the day after the accident.
Benassi was also convicted of felony welfare fraud on Dec. 4, 2008 and was given a nine-month sentence to run concurrently with the sentence she received for the reckless homicide conviction.