A Michigan man was convicted Friday of driving the wrong way on an interstate and slamming his pickup truck into a minivan, killing a Maryland mother and four children who were returning home from a Christmas trip.
Michael Gagnon of Adrian, Mich., pleaded no contest to five counts of aggravated vehicular homicide and two counts of aggravated vehicular assault. Lucas County Common Pleas Judge Linda Jennings found him guilty.
Police said his blood-alcohol level was more than double the legal limit, and assistant prosecutor Jeff Lingo said Friday tests also showed that Gagnon had marijuana in his system.
Gagnon faces up to 50 years in prison when sentenced June 27.
Authorities said Gagnon had been drinking with family on Dec. 30 to celebrate the New Year when he went out for fast-food and took a wrong turn onto Interstate 280 in Toledo.
Gagnon drove about four miles in the wrong direction and just missed several other cars before his truck struck the minivan filled with six children and a husband and wife who had spent Christmas with their family in Michigan, authorities said.
The minivan was rounding a curve when the truck came directly at the family. Both drivers tried to avoid each other, but the crash ripped open one side of the van, hurtling some of the victims into the road and scattering toys, stuffed animals and bits of gift wrap.
An infant's car seat sat upright in the road.
Bethany Griffin, 36, of Parkville, Md., and three of her daughters -- Vadi Griffin, 2 months; Lacie Burkman, 7; and Haley Burkman, 10 -- died in the crash along with Jordan Griffin, 10, the daughter of Bethany Griffin's husband, Danny Griffin Jr., 36.
Danny Griffin was injured in the accident along with 8-year-old Sydney Griffin.
As Gagnon walked through the courtroom Friday with his hands cuffed and feet shackled, family members of the victims, including Danny Griffin, grew quiet. When it was over, they left the courtroom without speaking to reporters.
Gagnon's speech was slurred and he smelled of alcohol at the crash scene, police said.
Following the accident, Gagnon's family members said he made a mistake but was not a monster. They said what happened was out of character for Gagnon, who had been attending community college to become an architect.
He and his brother owned a construction business.