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An 18-year-old man has been indicted on a count of driving under the influence of alcohol, controlled substances or drugs causing death and another count of negligent homicide.
The charges stem from a car crash in which Wheeling Park High School student Devin Sovinsky was killed. Cory Sipos was the driver in the crash that occurred along Bethany Pike in the early morning hours of July 18, 2023.
According to a State Police crime lab analysis of a blood sample from Sipos, he allegedly had a blood alcohol content of .116.
Sovinsky was transported to WVU Medicine Wheeling Hospital after the crash, where he was pronounced dead at 4:05 a.m.
Another minor present in the rear seat of the vehicle received minor injuries from the crash, according to the Wheeling Police Department.
The case has been transferred from the Ohio County Prosecutor's Office to be handled by Hancock County Prosecuting Attorney Steven Dragisich. Dragisich, when contacted Thursday, cited a conflict of Sipos' grandfather being an Ohio County House Arrest officer as the reason for the transfer.
"What happens when a transfer such as this occurs is that the Prosecuting Attorneys Institute is asked to choose a special prosecutor due to any potential conflict," explained Dragisich. "I was selected as a special prosecutor by the Prosecuting Attorneys Institute, so that's why I'm handling the matter."
Sipos' trial will still take place in Ohio County Circuit Court with Judge Jason Cuomo presiding over the case.
Dragisich said Sipos' arraignment will "probably" occur next Friday at the Ohio County Courthouse.