A North Carolina man accused of causing an accident that killed three family members and injured three others in Jerusalem Township pleaded not guilty Monday in Oregon Municipal Court.
Alejandro Ramirez-Jaramillo, 26, of Asheboro, N.C., was charged with three counts of aggravated vehicular homicide, all second-degree felonies, after a crash on North Cousino Road. He was arrested Sunday and remains in the Lucas County jail.
Mr. Ramirez-Jaramillo is also being held on an immigration detainer issued by the U.S. Border Patrol.
During a video arraignment Monday, Judge Jeffery Keller ordered bond be continued at $100,000 for each of three counts of aggravated vehicular homicide, with no 10 percent. Bond was set prior to Monday’s hearing.
City Prosecutor Melissa Purpura recommended bond be continued at the set amount because he considers Mr. Ramirez-Jaramillo to be a flight risk.
Mr. Ramirez-Jaramillo said he resides in North Carolina and works in construction.
His attorney, Lara Rump, requested a “reasonable cash bond.”
An interpreter was in court as Mr. Ramirez-Jaramillo does not speak English.
A preliminary hearing was set for 10 a.m. April 6.
Robin Shellhammer, 60, and Barbara Shellhammer, 56, both of Oregon, and their daughter, Whitney Meinke, 33, of Curtice, died Sunday from injuries they suffered in the crash.
All three Lucas County residents were in a car driving east on Seaman Road. Mr. Ramirez-Jaramillo, 26, was driving a van north on Cousino Road. He failed to stop at a stop sign. The vehicle he was driving collided with the car driven by Mr. Shellhammer.
Javier Cervera, 38, of Greensboro, N.C., and Pedro Martinez, unknown age and residence, were also in the van. All three people in the van were taken to Mercy Health St. Charles Hospital.
Mrs. Shellhammer was the director of Nourish Early Learning, a daycare on Navarre Avenue, Oregon. Mrs. Meinke was a third grade teacher at R.C. Waters Elementary School in Oak Harbor, Ohio. She leaves behind her husband and two children.
All three occupants in the van were wearing seat belts, as was Mrs. Shellhammer. Mr. Shellhammer and Ms. Meinke were not wearing seatbelts.
It was the second fatal crash in the past week in Jerusalem Township. Three men died in a single-car crash March 19.
Contact Allison Reamer at: areamer@theblade.com, 419-724-6506, or on Twitter @AllisonRBlade.
First Published March 28, 2017, 4:00 a.m.