TRAVERSE CITY -- An East Bay Township woman who allegedly caused a traffic crash that killed a downstate woman faces criminal charges.
Amber Elizabeth Clous, 23, is charged with operating while intoxicated causing death and negligent homicide. Prosecutors authorized the charges this week, and Clous hadn't yet been arrested Wednesday afternoon.
Lansing resident Karon Sue Black, 66, died in a Jan. 14 crash on County Road 633 near Bartlett Road in Mayfield Township. A pickup driven by Clous crossed the center line and was struck in the side by an oncoming van containing Black and her family.
Clous said she lost control of her vehicle because of icy road conditions -- an assertion backed up by a nearby driver who saw the collision, and Black's daughter, who drove the van -- but police contend a prescription drug may have played a role in the crash.
Clous was on the painkiller methadone for extensive pre-existing medical conditions, according to a police report, and deputies allegedly found pills crushed into powder in a large spoon in the truck's console.
She told police she crushed the pills so they were easier to swallow, but police believe they have evidence that contradicts that statement, Grand Traverse Prosecutor Alan Schneider said. He wouldn't provide details.
"The manner in which she was taking it could be considered abusive, and could impair the ability to operate a motor vehicle," he said.
A Michigan State Police toxicologist said Clous' driving over the center line is "consistent with a driver who has impaired abilities due to the consumption of methadone through a method of rapid absorption," according to a probable cause form filed in court by Schneider's office.
A blood sample allegedly showed Clous had methadone in her system at the time, court records show. She told police she had taken her normal dose the morning of the crash and didn't feel any effects of the drug at the time of the collision.
She had a portion in the spoon because she planned to take it later that day, she said.
