The North Baltimore man who struck a school bus earlier this month has been indicted.
A Wood County grand jury on Wednesday indicted Aaron Hilt, 32, for 13 counts of aggravated vehicular assault, two counts of operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol, and one count of vandalism.
It is alleged that Hilt was intoxicated on Sept. 7 when he struck the rear end of an Arlington School District school bus on 1-75 near North Baltimore. The bus was filled with 39 students and faculty returning home from a junior high school football game when it was struck.
According to reports, while Hilt’s vehicle careened off 1-75, through a fence, and came to rest on a side road, the school bus driver was able to bring the bus to a controlled stop.
Several students and staff went to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Each aggravated vehicular assault is an upper-tier felony of the third degree, carrying a maximum penalty of five years in prison. Vandalism is a felony of the fifth degree with a maximum penalty of one year in prison. The operating a motor vehicle under the influence charges are each misdemeanors of the first degree.
According to court documents, Hilt had a blood alcohol content of over 0.20 and had previously been convicted for OVI in Wood County in 2021.
The vandalism charge is for allegedly damaging property owned the Arlington Local Schools.
Should Hilt be convicted of all offenses, he faces a maximum penalty of 66 years in prison. Under Ohio law, sentences on misdemeanors cannot run consecutively to sentences for felonies.
Hilt has posted a $50,000 bond.
His case has been assigned to Wood County Common Pleas Court Judge Molly Mack. His arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 2.
