A Hortonville woman pleaded not guilty Oct. 7 to a homicide charge in connection with a November 2024 fatal crash on Interstate 41 in Grand Chute.
Rosalie Polsin, 78, was charged with one count of homicide by negiligent operation of a vehicle on May 5. She entered her not guilty plea at her Oct. 7 arraignment.
The crash killed Austin Lavicka Luehring of Neenah.
What happened?
According to a criminal complaint:
Around 10:20 p.m. Nov. 5, 2024, Outagamie County dispatch received a call about a car driving the wrong way on Interstate 41. The call said the driver was travelling northbound in the southbound lanes of the interstate near College Avenue.
Officers from multiple departments were trying to intercept the vehicle when dispatch said they received a crash notification near I-41 and North Lynndale Drive.
At the scene of the crash, officers found a BMW and a Subaru Outback. Both vehicles were only occupied by the drivers, with Luehring driving the BMW and Polsin driving the Subaru. Officers noted that Luehring was “beyond help due to severe injuries” when they arrived, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
At the scene, Polsin told police she had been shopping on College Avenue and knew she was driving the wrong way, but didn’t know where to turn around.
Police interviewed Polsin on Nov. 10, 2024, while she was at the hospital. Polsin said she realized immediately upon getting onto the I-41 ramp that she was going the wrong way. She said she couldn’t find a place to turn around due to construction walls in the area. She said she did not remember attempting to slow down prior to the crash.
Polsin told police she believed she was driving 45-50 mph because she was scared of the vehicles going past her. She said she wished she had turned around immediately on the ramp when she realized she was driving the wrong way.
What’s next?
Polsin was booked into Outagamie County Jail but was released June 10 after signing a $100,000 bail. She is scheduled to return to court for a plea hearing Dec. 5.
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Vivian Barrett is the public safety reporter for the Green Bay Press-Gazette. You can reach her at vmbarrett@greenbay.gannett.com or (920) 431-8314.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Rosalie Polsin of Hortonville pleads not guilty in fatal 2024 crash