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Felony charge withdrawn from crash case

SAXONBURG — The major charge was dropped Wednesday in case stemming from an accident that has left a man in a quadriplegic state.

The crash occurred three months ago when Joseph Smithco’s truck and a SRU driven by Gina Machi collided on Route 8 in Middlesex Township.

On Wednesday, Machi, 18, of Gibsonia appeared before District Judge Sue Haggerty to waive her right for a preliminary hearing related to the crash.

Machi is charged with driving under the influence of a controlled substance, and possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia.

Assistant District Attorney Mark Lope said he and District Attorney Richard Goldinger agreed to drop the only felony charge Machi initially faced: aggravated assault by vehicle while DUI.

Lope explained that the DUI must be the definitive cause of a collision to prove that crime. And although prosecutors believe there is evidence enough to meet the standard needed for a preliminary hearing, the charge might not have met the reasonable doubt standard mandated by a jury trial.

According to police reports, on Aug. 25 Smithco pulled out of the south entrance of the Cogo’s parking lot in Middlesex Township when Machi’s southbound Mercedes sport utility vehicle collided with the driver’s side of his Chevy S-10 truck.

Smithco was thrown out of his truck and landed 65 feet away. Machi was partially thrown from her vehicle, which ended on its passenger side.

Investigators have asserted Machi was impaired by marijuana and the anti-anxiety medications nordiazepam, oxazepam and temazepam at the time of the collision.

Machi made no statements in court Wednesday. Her attorney David Cercone of Pittsburgh said she still is recovering from her own injuries, which included a broken pelvis and ankle.

Of the case, Cercone said only that prosecutor’s decision to withdraw the felony was “appropriate” given evidence from a reconstruction of the collision.

And, he said his client, who is free on $5,000 unsecured bail, is prepared to face the remaining charges.

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