(Court Reports - Photo Illustration/MetroCreativeConnection)

MARIETTA — A Pennsylvania man who was behind the wheel of a moving truck carrying his family and more than 30 snakes when it wrecked in Washington County last year has been indicted on charges of vehicular assault, animal cruelty and endangering children.

Davaughn Marice Strader, 39, 1350 Montezuma St., Pittsburgh, was one of 31 people against whom the Washington County Grand Jury returned indictments this week.

Strader was indicted on a second-degree felony count of aggravated vehicular assault, a third-degree felony count of vehicular assault, two fifth-degree felony counts of cruelty to companion animals and two misdemeanor counts of endangering children, according to court documents.

The crash happened on July 6, 2023, near mile marker 9 on Interstate 77. According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Strader was in the process of moving when the U-Haul truck flipped, spilling furniture and other contents along the road.

Troopers responding to the accident contacted Adrienne Love, founder and owner of local reptile rescue and sanctuary For Goodness Snakes8, for assistance with the reptiles. She recovered 32 ball pythons, one boa imperator and a couple of leopard geckos.

All of the snakes had respiratory infections, which can be lethal for snakes and was likely caused by being kept in containers that contained their own bodily waste products, Love said. Some also were exhibiting “stuck shed,” dead skin that failed to completely come off, she said.

The aggravated vehicular assault charge is a result of Strader allegedly causing “serious physical harm” to a female passenger as a result of operating the vehicle under the influence of drugs, Assistant Washington County Prosecutor David Silwani said. The third-degree vehicular assault charge is based on reckless operation. Strader’s operation of the vehicle also violated state code and created a substantial risk to the health or safety of juveniles in the vehicle, the indictment says in reference to the misdemeanor counts.

One animal cruelty charge refers to ocular damage the snakes suffered “due to the lack of care when shedding,” while the other simply says Strader knowingly caused the reptiles “serious physical harm.”

Love said Thursday that all of the snakes she recovered from the wreck died due to inclusion body disease, a neurological condition caused by being bitten by infected mites or living in unsanitary conditions – both of which applied to the snakes from the U-Haul.

“All of the animals that we recovered were covered in mites,” she said. “The two geckos made it, and they actually were adopted out.”

Love tried to look for a positive in the situation, calling it a good learning experience to show people that even reptiles “can be abused and mistreated.”

Also indicted by the grand jury were:

* Linda Inez Leccese, 30, 101 Market St, Marietta; third-degree felony possession of a fentanyl-related compound and fifth-degree felony possession of cocaine from August 2023. Co-defendant Erica Breeanne Cobb, 26, 567 Sixth St., Parkersburg; second-degree misdemeanor obstructing official business from August 2023.

* Anna Denise Jones, 59, 118 Harmar St., Marietta; third-degree felony illegal conveyance of drugs of abuse onto grounds of a specific governmental facility and fifth-degree felony aggravated possession of drugs in June 2023. Co-defendant Evette Meshelle Miller, 46, 1308 Williamson Ave., Apt 7B, New Matamoras; fifth-degree felony aggravated possession of drugs in June.

* Charles Keith Bailey, 36, Stockport; felonious assault, a second-degree felony, and two counts of domestic violence, a fourth-degree felony, from June .

* Devonn Curtis, 64, 27335 State Route 7, Lot 13, Marietta; 10 counts of fifth-degree felony violating a protection order and one count of first-degree misdemeanor assault from June. Co-defendants Justin Tyler Gibbs, 32, 210 Lancaster St, Marietta, and Adam Mohemud Elhady, 20, 11461 Sobieski St, Hamtramck, Mich., one first-degree misdemeanor count each of violating a protection order in June.

* Angela M. Moore, 44, 10422 Alderman Road, Buchtel, and Justin K. Vincent, 41, 2376 Seminary St., Coolville; one fourth-degree felony count each of receiving stolen property from January. Moore was also indicted on a fifth-degree felony count of aggravated possession of drugs from January. In a separate indictment, Moore, with a listed address of 2255 Sycamore Lane, Stockport, was charged with fifth-degree felony aggravated possession of drugs from March.

* Aris Lemont Mann, 34, 522 Treeside Drive, Apt 4, Akron; first-degree felony trafficking in cocaine and first-degree felony possession of cocaine from May. Co-defendant Thomas Cecil Means Jr., 42, 22 Valley Addition, Poca, W.Va., first-degree misdemeanor driving under an OVI suspension from May. Co-defendant Melissa Lynn Perrelli, 37, 323 22nd St., Dunbar, W.Va.; fourth-degree misdemeanor illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia from May.

* Mindy C. Stalnaker, 39, 2661 Bailey Ridge, Buckhannon, W.Va.; two counts of fifth-degree felony possession of a fentanyl-related compound from March 2021.

* Christopher Eugene Hooper, no age listed, 16784 Highland Ave., Caldwell; third-degree felony tampering with evidence and fifth-degree felony aggravated possession of drugs from March.

* Michael Joseph Spencer, 36, 31350 Haessly Road, Hanoverton; fourth-degree felony grand theft of a motor vehicle, first-degree misdemeanor unlawful operation of a motor vehicle with a suspended license and operating a motor vehicle or agricultural tractor without being in control of it, a minor misdemeanor, all from August 2023.

* Darin Shawn Miller, 47, no address listed; two counts of fifth-degree felony aggravated possession of drugs from October 2023 in two separate cases.

* Jason D. Johns, 40, 5971 Elizabeth Pike, Elizabeth; and Shannon L. Pelfrey, 49, P.O. Box 96, Elizabeth; one count each of first-degree felony aggravated trafficking in and aggravated possession of drugs from May 2021. Pelfrey was also indicted on one count of fifth-degree felony aggravated possession of drugs from May 2021.

* Charles Walker Church, 25, 939 Windy Ridge Road, Vincent; fifth-degree felony failure to stop after an accident from May. Co-defendant Destiny Sue Tabler, 25, 939 Windy Ridge Road, Vincent; second-degree misdemeanor obstructing official business from May.

* Mary Beth (Antill) Kraft, 53, 514 Wood St., Woodsfield; failure to appear, a fourth-degree felony, from June.

* Jonathan Michael Range, 40, last known address 117 Forest Ave., Mineral Wells; failure to appear, a fourth-degree felony, from June.

* Gage O’Ryan Howell, 27, last known address 229 S. Seventh St., Marietta; third-degree felony tampering with evidence and fifth-degree felony possessing criminal tools from May.

* Jerry Tim Bellville IV, 19, 111 Faye Ave., Marietta, and Kevin William Ritchie, 18, 123 Devol Drive, Marietta; one fourth-degree felony count each of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor from May.

* Michael Jalawn Littleton, 47, 1145 Eastwood Drive, Fairmont; violating a protection order, a fifth-degree felony, from September 2022.

* Shannaiah Cheyenne Kemp, 27, 1807 Pike St., Parkersburg; theft, a fifth-degree felony, from May.

* John J. Sparks, 51, homeless; second-degree felony burglary, fifth-degree felony attempt to commit theft of drugs and second-degree misdemeanor counts of resisting arrest and obstructing official business from October 2022. In a separate indictment, Sparks, with a listed address of 42 Haas Drive, Stockport, was charged with fifth-degree felony breaking and entering, first-degree misdemeanor petty theft and fourth-degree misdemeanor criminal trespass from July 2021.

* Scotty Lee Kisner, 52, Cutler; fourth-degree felony strangulation and first-degree misdemeanor domestic violence from April.

* Darin Shawn Miller, 47, no address listed; aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, from October 2023.

Staff reporter Douglass Huxley contributed to this story.

Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com