Vesper woman and Nekoosa man charged in fatal September motorcycle crash in Port Edwards
WISCONSIN RAPIDS – Felony charges were filed Wednesday against a Vesper woman and a Nekoosa man in connection with a fatal motorcycle crash more than nine months ago that killed 47-year-old Casey L. Wulf of Port Edwards.
Faith A. Szelagowski, 39, was charged with homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle, homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle with a prohibited alcohol concentration and knowingly operating while revoked causing death, according to court records.
Dwayne R. Corry, 58, was charged with hit-and-run involving great bodily harm and knowingly operating while revoked causing great bodily harm, according to court records.
The crash happened about 2:30 a.m. Sept. 16 on State 54, near Green Grove Lane, in the town of Port Edwards. Wulf was driving a motorcycle west on State 54, when a vehicle traveling behind the motorcycle, driven by Szelagowski, hit the back of it as they approached the intersection, according to the Wood County Sheriff’s Department.Wulf was thrown from the motorcycle and died at the scene, according to the sheriff’s department.
According to the criminal complaint, when officers arrived they found Wulf lying motionless on State 54 and two females, including Szelagowski, attempting to provide CPR. A deputy coroner later declared Wulf deceased.
Szelagowski initially told deputies that another vehicle had hit Wulf. She later said she was following Wulf home from a bar and she collided with the rear of the motorcycle. She said that after the crash she backed up in the road and started CPR. She said she then got back in her vehicle and went back to the bar to get help. She said she’s pretty sure she ran Wulf over and then backed up, according to the complaint.
A white Dodge Challenger at the scene, registered to Szelagowski, had damage to the right front grill and hood area.
Szelagowski told another deputy she did not have a valid driver’s license, that she struck the motorcycle and said she had been drinking and was drunk, according to the complaint.
A deputy said Szelagowski had a very strong odor of alcohol, bloodshot and glossy eyes and slurred speech. A field sobriety test showed signs of intoxication and she registered a 0.183% on preliminary breath tests. She was taken to Aspirus Riverview Hospital and a blood sample was taken, which found Szelagowski had a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.188%, according to the complaint.
Deputies arrested Szelagowski on Sept. 16, following the crash.
Video camera footage taken from a residence on Green Grove Lane as well as video from the front and rear of Wulf’s motorcycle also captured footage from the crash, which indicated another vehicle − a blue SUV with black rims − was involved.
Corry spoke with deputies on Sept. 19 and said he drove home from the same bar as Szelagowski and Wulf the morning of Sept. 16 and while driving saw a motorcycle on the left side of State 54 and a vehicle on the right and he ran something over. He said he thought it was a piece of motorcycle and it sounded like plastic. He said that he could hear the muffler on his vehicle dragging and thought that whatever he ran over disconnected his muffler. He denied running over a person. He said he did not stop and drove home, according to the complaint.
On Sept. 19, Corry also met with a deputy at his home who said he saw a blue Suzuki SX4 at Corry’s residence, and Corry said it was the vehicle he was driving the morning of the incident. The deputy observed damage to the front of the vehicle that was repaired with duct tape. Corry said when he ran something over that night, he had parts that broke underneath his vehicle that were dragging. He said he had taken off a plastic piece that was dragging and hung it in the rafters of the garage. The deputy saw a black plastic piece hanging from the rafters and it appeared to have a piece of hair on it, according to the complaint.
Hairs and materials taken from near the driver’s side front tire of Corry’s vehicle were tested and matched DNA from Wulf, according to a Wisconsin State Crime Lab report.
A collision analysis reconstruction report prepared by the Wisconsin State Patrol states that Szelagowski’s vehicle struck Wulf’s motorcycle and a short time after a vehicle driven by Corry ran over Wulf as he was in the road, according to the criminal complaint.
Szelagowski and Corry are scheduled to make initial appearances on June 29.
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Editor Jamie Rokus can be reached at jrokus@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter at @Jamie_Rokus.
This article originally appeared on Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune: 2 charged in September fatal motorcycle crash in Port Edwards
