|
| |
|
| |
|
|
|
November 24, 2004Charges against Otsego deputy weighedByRecord-Eagle staff writer GAYLORD - Antrim County's prosecutor will decide whether an Otsego County sheriff's deputy will be charged in the September traffic death of another deputy. Charles Koop was named special prosecutor by the Michigan Attorney General's Office. He said he will decide after Thanksgiving if criminal charges are warranted against deputy Andrew Nobliski. Nobliski and deputy John Gunsell were responding to a follow-up accident investigation on Old Alba Road about 3:10 a.m. Sept. 12 when the patrol car driven by Nobliski missed a sharp curve on Dickerson Road near the Otsego County Regional Airport. The car rolled over more than once and crashed through airport fencing, state police said. Gunsell, 43, who wasn't wearing a seat belt, was thrown about 70 feet. He later died at Otsego Memorial Hospital. State law requires front-seat passengers to wear seat belts. There is no exception for law enforcement. Nobliski, 26, who wore his seat belt, was treated and released from the hospital. He remains on paid administrative leave, Otsego Sheriff Jim McBride said. Nobliski joined the sheriff's department in July 2000 and Gunsell was with the department more than five years. Koop has not yet received an autopsy report. State police reports listed vehicle speed, road conditions and the fact that Gunsell was not wearing a seat belt as factors in the fatal crash. Nobliski could not be reached for comment. Last month, he attended a budget session where county leaders discussed the proposed elimination of the sheriff's road patrol. He asked county commissioners not to compare the sheriff's department to other police agencies because each is unique. "This job is a liability. We risk our lives," Nobliski told county commissioners when liability insurance costs were cited as a reason to drop the sheriff's road patrol.
|
|
