MICHIGAN — A 32-year-old woman and her unborn child were killed in a crash late Saturday night on US-23 in Whiteford Township.
According to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, the crash occurred just after 10 p.m. on northbound US-23, north of Consear Road.
Investigators said Kaitlyn Ellison of Petersburg was driving a red Ford Escape in the right lane when her vehicle was struck by a white Chrysler 300.
Witnesses reported that the Chrysler was being driven at a high rate of speed and passing vehicles on the right shoulder.
Authorities said the 24-year-old driver from Oregon, Ohio, attempted to re-enter traffic from the shoulder, then tried to pass Ellison from the left, striking her vehicle.
The impact forced Ellison’s SUV off the road, where it rolled several times down an embankment before coming to rest on its right side. Emergency crews had to extricate Ellison from the wreck.
She was taken to a nearby hospital, where both she and her unborn child were pronounced dead. Ellison was seven months pregnant.
The driver of the Chrysler lost control after the collision and ended up in the left median.
He fled the scene on foot. Deputies, along with a K9 unit and drone team, located him at a nearby Pilot gas station on US-223, where he was arrested.
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office said alcohol is believed to have been a factor.
The suspect is being held in the Monroe County Jail and faces two counts of second-degree homicide and two counts of operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing death. His name is being withheld pending arraignment.
The crash remains under investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office at 734-240-7548. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP or online at www.1800speakup.org.
