The Powell man who confessed in an online video to causing a fatal wrong-way crash on I-670 after a night of heavy drinking in June has pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide. 22-year-old Matthew Cordle also pleaded guilty yesterday to operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol. Attorneys for Cordle say he wanted to plead guilty to make good on his video pledge to accept responsibility for the crash that killed 61-year-old Vincent Canzani. Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O'Brien says the case against Cordle would have resulted in a conviction, regardless of his online confession.
Defense attorneys Martin Midian and George Breitmayer said in court that Cordle would grant an interview today to an unidentified national media outlet to answer questions about his motives for making the video. But late in the day, they said their client decided to cancel the interview to keep the focus on his anti-drunken-driving message.
Cordle faces up to eight and a half years in prison when sentenced on October 10th. O'Brien says he will ask the judge to impose the maximum sentence.