The Ross County Grand Jury returned all 17 of their cases on Friday, April 5th, 2024, but with one downgraded to misdemeanor. Three were open to release to the public. From testimony in the the grand jury in one of the cases, according to the Ross County Prosecutor’s Office:
On January 20th, Chillicothe Police officers were dispatched to the BP gas station at 760 North Bridge Street in reference to a crash.
Upon arrival, they saw the suspect vehicle being driven from Applebee’s with a large amount of front-end damage. They activated their overhead lights but the driver continued southbound on Bridge Street, driving through a red light, before eventually stopping.
58-year-old Lisa J. Dennison of 280 Clark Drive in Circleville was so slow in complying that an officer had to reach in and turn off the engine. She was removed from the vehicle and “had an overwhelming odor of alcohol,” bloodshot eyes, her speech was slurred, and she could not maintain her balance. She denied drinking anything.
Dennison was given a field sobriety test. A warrant was used to collect her blood for testing, which showed a blood alcohol content of 0.215. (At or above 0.08 allows a charge of OVI; about 0.3 can lead to unconsciousness, and about 0.4 can be deadly.)
Dennison has a prior felony OVI in Pickaway County.
For two third-degree felony indictments on Operating a Vehicle Under the Influence of Alcohol she could get up to three years and $10,000 in fines.
For a first-degree misdemeanor Failure to Stop After an Accident, she could get up to six months and $1,000 in fines.
The BP gas station at 760 North Bridge Street, Chillicothe.