A Georgia man faces two felony charges related to a crash that led to the death of an Ohio man in July 2020 along Interstate 65 in northern Jackson County.
Indiana State Police arrested Donald Douglas Nicholl, 32, of Decatur, Georgia, on a Jackson Circuit Court warrant for operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing death, a Level 4 felony, and reckless homicide, a Level 5 felony.
That arrest occurred in Georgia, and he was brought to Jackson County by a prison transport service. He was booked into the Jackson County Jail in Brownstown at 11:29 p.m. Thursday and was being held without bond Friday afternoon.
The incident that led to his arrest occurred July 9, 2020, after the death of Daniel Cosma, 41, of North Royalton, Ohio.
Cosma was pronounced dead by former Jackson County Coroner Michael Bobb after a two-vehicle crash in the southbound lanes of the interstate at the 53 mile marker.
The initial investigation by troopers with the ISP Versailles Crash Reconstruction Team indicated Cosma had been driving a 2001 Volvo truck pulling a trailer. Due to a mechanical issue, he pulled over onto the right lane of the interstate in a construction zone since there wasn’t a shoulder in the area, police said.
While Cosma was stopped in the roadway, a 2015 Volvo truck pulling a trailer, driven by Nicholl, struck Cosma’s trailer, police said. The impact forced Cosma’s truck into him as he was outside working on it.
Cosma suffered fatal injuries, while Nicholl, who also faces an infraction for driving too fast for conditions, was not injured in the collision.
The southbound lanes of I-65 were closed for nearly four hours for crash investigation and cleanup.
The sentence for a Level 4 felony is two to 12 years in prison with an advisory sentence of six years if convicted.