Sedalia man charged with 2 counts of manslaughter in September crash, accused of looking at phone during crash
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A Sedalia man has been charged with manslaughter in Morgan County in relation to a Sept. 16 crash that killed two people.
Ruvim Izotia was charged on Monday with two counts of first-degree involuntary manslaughter, two counts of driving while using a phone, one count of second-degree assault and three misdemeanors: Driving while using an electronic device, following another vehicle too closely and speeding.
A warrant for his arrest was issued on Monday and a $100,000 bond was set.
The probable cause statement claims Izotia caused the crash with his Mercedes. Previous reporting shows an 18-year-old Sedalia man allegedly rear-ended a 2013 Mercedes-Benz Class S a 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt driven by a 48-year-old Cole Camp woman. The crash occurred on Highway 50 near Old Highway 50.
The hit pushed the Chevrolet into the oncoming lane, which caused another crash into a 2012 Mazda 3 – driven by a 38-year-old Russellville man, the report says.
The Russellville man was pronounced dead at the scene, while a 45-year-old Versailles man who was a passenger was pronounced dead at a hospital.
A Missouri State Highway Patrol Trooper requested data from each vehicle, which allegedly showed the Chevrolet slow down from 57 miles per hour to 28 miles per hour, and then speed up again by 25 miles per hour after it was hit, the statement says.
Information from Life360 allegedly indicated there were 19 “distracted driving events” involving Izotia’s phone during the 21-minute trip, the statement says.
