Syracuse Man Arrested After Vehicle Hits House, Injures Woman
Staff Report
SYRACUSE — A Syracuse man was recently arrested after he left the scene of an accident in which he allegedly drove into a house and injured a woman.
Jeromie Lee Bright, 42, 804 N. Mill St., Syracuse, is charged with criminal mischief where damage is at least $50,000 and leaving the scene of an accident with moderate or serious bodily injury, both level 6 felonies.
Around 4:30 a.m. Jan. 9, officers with the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of an accident on North SR 13 in Syracuse. A man said he woke up to the sound of a large crash and found a vehicle had hit his home. The man said it appeared no one was in the vehicle. It was later determined that Bright was driving the vehicle at the time of the crash.
According to court documents, after the accident, Bright fled the scene on foot and never made contact with law enforcement.
The man said he and three relatives were all asleep in the home when the accident happened. One of the women was sleeping in the front bedroom where the crash happened.
The woman who had slept in the front bedroom said she woke up to a loud crash and the residence’s wall falling on top of her, including the exterior rock wall, the interior drywall and window. She was treated for head and neck injuries at a hospital.
During the investigation, a KCSO deputy spoke with a woman who said she received a phone call from Bright during the early morning hours of Jan. 9. In the phone call, Bright asked the woman for a ride and said he had just crashed his vehicle into a house and needed a ride home. He allegedly instructed the woman on where to pick him up.
The deputy met with Bright in Syracuse to discuss the accident. Bright said he was driving home when his vehicle hit a patch of black ice while taking the corner at North SR 13 and East Waco Drive. He then lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a house. Bright told the deputy he left his vehicle and headed south toward North Webster.
When asked if he had been drinking prior to the accident, Bright said he had.
According to records from the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Bright had not provided proof that he had insurance on the vehicle when the accident occurred. Bright’s driving record also shows two prior incidents where he was administratively suspended for failing to provide proof of insurance. These incidents occurred in 2016 and 2018.
Bright is currently on pretrial release for battery by means of a deadly weapon and criminal confinement.
He also has prior convictions for battery and operating a vehicle while intoxicated. In the battery case, Bright admitted to a probation violation for failing to comply with substance abuse treatment and testing positive on drug tests.
For this case, Bright was booked in the Kosciusko County Jail on March 3, with a $10,250 surety and cash bond.