Overview

• At his June 24 initial hearing, Porter Circuit Court Judge Rebecca Buitendorp ordered 18-year-old Austin Thornton to post $25,000 cash bond.
• Prosecutors charged Thornton with a Level 4 felony for OWI causing death, Level 5 felonies for reckless homicide and criminal recklessness, and Level 6 felonies for driving while suspended resulting in death and bodily injury.
• Witnesses and the probable cause statement say Thornton accelerated around a bend after passing in a no-passing zone on U.S. 12 near Waverly Road, lost control, and ejected passenger Saelor Guistolisi.
• Officers obtained a search warrant after Thornton initially refused testing, and subsequent blood draws at the police station and hospital registered a 0.063% blood alcohol content, exceeding Indiana’s zero-tolerance limit for underage drivers.
• Thornton also faces a pending felony criminal confinement case in Lake Superior Court, and Guistolisi’s family and friends have raised over $13,300 on GoFundMe for funeral expenses.