A New Chicago man has been charged with leaving the scene of a fatal accident and 11 other counts in a June crash that killed a Michigan man setting up barricades and road signs for railroad repairs in Merrillville.
Michael Mitol, 54, was charged in Lake Superior Court in the death of Kevin Folleth, 48, of Mason, Mich., who was hit by a red pickup truck at 7:09 p.m. June 11 in the 6100 block of Broadway in Merrillville. Folleth was found on the northbound shoulder of Broadway at the entrance to the Auto Zone parking lot. He was pronounced dead at Methodist Hospitals Northlake Campus about 40 minutes later.
Court records indicate that Folleth, an employee of Best Barricading, was placing barricades and road signs in anticipation of work on the Canadian National Railroad crossing that had been scheduled to begin the following day.
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Witnesses identified Mitol as the driver of the 1997 Ford pickup, which police later stopped at the Go-Lo Gas station at 5285 Broadway, court records said. Police obtained a search warrant and collected DNA evidence from the pickup truck, which was consistent with Folleth’s DNA, court records said. Police also found a half-full bottle of Seagram’s whiskey on the passenger side floor board, several cans of beer in the back seat, several empty beer cans in the truck bed and four pills in a prescription bottle, records said.
An investigation by Merrillville police found that Folleth had his work truck flashing lights activated and was parked facing north on the northbound shoulder, east of the fog line, records said. Folleth was working next to his truck when Mitol, who was driving north on Broadway in the right lane, drifted to the east, crossed the fog line, and struck Follett and his truck, records said.
Mitol had an alcohol concentration equivalent of .11 percent, according to results from the Indiana State Department of Toxicology, court records said. Indiana law sets a .08 limit for intoxication. In addition, Mitol’s blood alcohol contained Methadone and Phencyclidine, which are both schedule II controlled substances, court documents said.
Mitol was charged with leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in serious bodily injury, causing death when operating a motor vehicle with an alcohol concentration equivalent of .08 percent or higher, causing death when operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, causing serious bodily injury when operating a motor vehicle with an alcohol concentration equivalent of .08 percent or more, causing serious bodily injury when operating a vehicle while intoxicated, leaving the scene of an accident with serious bodily injury, and four operating while intoxicated misdemeanors. Two of the charges are Level 3 felonies, which are punishable by three to 16 years.
At the time of the crash, Mitol’s license was suspended with a prior conviction.
No hearing dates had been set as of Tuesday afternoon.
Ruth Ann Krause is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.