Akron man convicted of aggravated vehicular homicide for fatal ATV crash on frozen lake
An Akron man was convicted Wednesday of charges stemming from a collision between a snowmobile and ATV on a frozen reservoir in Coventry Township.
Sebastian Spencer was killed in the February 2021 crash, while Fred Klemp was seriously injured.
Klemp, who was scheduled to go on trial Wednesday in Summit County Common Pleas Court, instead accepted an agreement with prosecutors. He pleaded no contest to aggravated vehicular homicide, a third-degree felony, and operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, a first-degree misdemeanor.
Prosecutors agreed to dismiss a second OVI charge.
Judge Alison Breaux found Klemp guilty of the charges. Klemp could get up to five years in prison when Breaux sentences him May 24.
Klemp, 36, said during the hearing that he was pleading no contest because of a wrongful death lawsuit that’s pending against him in Summit County Common Pleas Court. A no-contest plea cannot be used as an admission of fault in a civil case.
Both riders sustain serious injuries in crash
The crash happened about 2:20 a.m. Feb. 21, 2021, on the frozen West Reservoir near Pick’s, a Portage Lakes bar.
More: Man killed, another injured in crash involving off-road vehicles on ice in Coventry
Klemp was driving a 2005 Arctic Cat snowmobile, while Spencer, 20, of Green, was driving a 2006 Yamaha YFS200, a sport-style four-wheeler.
The vehicles collided head-on, ejecting both riders.
Spencer was transported to Cleveland Clinic Akron General, where he was pronounced dead. Klemp was taken to Summa Akron City Hospital where he was treated for serious injuries.
The crash followed the 2021 PLX Ice Ride at 7:30 p.m. on the ice-covered West Reservoir between Upper Deck and Pick's. Riding on the reservoir was scheduled to end at 9 p.m., with a bonfire near Dusty’s Landing.
Riding on the ice is restricted by law between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m.
Klemp and Sebastian both had blood-alcohol levels of more than 0.24 percent, well above the legal blood-alcohol limit for driving in Ohio of 0.08 percent, investigators found.
Larry Whitney, Klemp’s attorney, declined to comment at the plea hearing. He said he and Klemp both will say very little during the sentencing because of the pending civil suit.
Spencer's mother files wrongful death lawsuit
Sherry Abbott-Spencer, Sebastian’s mother, filed the civil suit in February. She claims in the lawsuit that her son died as the result of Klemp’s “carelessness, negligence, willfulness, wantonness and/or recklessness” and that she suffered severe mental anguish, loss of society, services, guidance, solace, care and affection and incurred funeral and burial expenses.
Abbott-Spencer is seeking damages exceeding $25,000, as well as punitive damages and attorney’s fees.
In response to the complaint, Klemp’s attorneys admitted the collision occurred, but denied the other allegations.
The case is assigned to Judge Tammy O’Brien.
Both men were known in the Portage Lakes area
Spencer, known as “Bash" or "Seabass” to friends, became a father shortly before his death. He was well-known in the Portage Lakes area, where he worked as a seasonal employee at Pick’s.
After his death, the restaurant donated 100% of its sales one day to Spencer’s family. A GoFundMe fundraiser collected more than $24,000.
“He was one of those guys who was always happy,” said Don Boyer, who owns Pick’s.
More: Portage Lakes community mourns loss of 'always happy' man, 20, who recently became a father
A second GoFundMe fundraiser was set up for Klemp, raising more than $21,000. Mitch Klemp, the organizer, said Fred grew up on the Portage Lakes. He said Fred had substantial injuries and would have a “long road of recovery ahead of him.”
Stephanie Warsmith can be reached at swarsmith@thebeaconjournal.com, 330-996-3705 and on Twitter: @swarsmithabj.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Akron man convicted of vehicular homicide in fatal ATV crash
