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Felony charges filed against teen in 2015 crash

SLIPPERY ROCK TWP, Lawrence County — A Butler County teenager was high on marijuana when he ran a stop sign and crashed into a pickup truck, authorities said.

The 2015 wreck left two other teenagers seriously injured, including one who remains paralyzed.

State police Tuesday charged Austin D. Lawson, 19, of Jackson Township with two felony counts of aggravated assault by vehicle while driving under the influence of a controlled substance.

Additional charges include driving under the influence of a controlled substance, driving at an unsafe speed, careless driving, reckless driving and a stop sign violation.

The charges followed a fresh look investigation led by Trooper Jason Young.

Similar charges were filed two months after the crash but the Lawrence County District Attorney’s Office earlier this month withdrew the case as it was pending trial.

That decision followed a suppression motion by Lawson’s attorney, David Shrager of Pittsburgh, that challenged blood-alcohol test results.

“There was no warrant obtained to get the blood results,” Shrager said Thursday.

A call to Jonathan Miller, an assistant district attorney, previously assigned to the case, was not immediately returned.

Police said Lawson’s Toyota Camry failed to stop at a stop sign at Mount Herman Church Road and Route 422 in Slippery Rock Township, and collided with a Ford F-350 pickup driven by Chester Chronoski, 77, of Steetsboro, Ohio.

Both vehicles rolled over following the collision.

Both drivers were hurt but not badly. Two of Lawson’s three passengers, however, suffered serious injuries. Medical helicopters flew both of them to area hospitals.

Young said one of the passengers, Jordan A. Majcan, 18, of Pittsburgh, was left with a severe spinal cord injury, which rendered him paralyzed and in the hospital for several months.

“His family believes it’s permanent,” Young said, referring to the teen’s paralysis. But he continues to receive physical therapy.

Joshua A. Susich, 18, of Long Beach, Calif., another passenger in the car, suffered several broken bones, bleeding of the brain and nerve damage to his right leg. He was hospitalized for about a week.

The third passenger, a 17-year-old girl from Cranberry Township, was flown to UPMC Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh.

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