A 23-year-old Ohio woman is facing multiple felony charges after prosecutors say she caused a deadly head-on crash that killed her younger sister and a friend while driving with a blood-alcohol level more than three times the legal limit.
Kelis Manuel, of Fairfield, Ohio, is accused of driving intoxicated and attempting to pass another vehicle in a no-passing zone before colliding with a semi-truck on a rural Indiana highway.
The June 14 crash killed her 21-year-old sister, Kimora Manuel, and 22-year-old Le’Marea Holmes. Another passenger, 20-year-old Niajah Rankins, suffered serious injuries.
According to the Dearborn County Prosecutor’s Office, the collision happened around 3:31 a.m. on U.S. Route 52 near West Harrison, a small community close to the Ohio border.
Investigators say Manuel was driving a Honda Civic westbound when witnesses noticed her vehicle swerving across the roadway and repeatedly crossing into oncoming traffic.
One motorist reportedly tried several times to convince the driver to pull over because of her dangerous driving.
Another witness told police that Manuel attempted to pass his vehicle while traveling in the eastbound lane, despite road markings prohibiting passing in that area.
Moments later, her Honda collided head-on with an approaching Volvo tractor-trailer.
The impact killed Kimora Manuel, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, and Holmes, who was riding in the back. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.
Rankins survived but suffered extensive injuries, including two broken thighbones.
Manuel was also seriously injured and transported to a Cincinnati-area hospital. The truck driver, 49-year-old Jimmy Davis, suffered minor injuries.
Indiana State Police initially identified alcohol and heavy rain as possible contributing factors while crash reconstruction specialists worked to determine what happened.
However, toxicology results obtained during the investigation later revealed that Manuel had a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.253%, according to prosecutors.
Indiana’s legal limit for drivers age 21 and older is 0.08%, meaning her reported level was more than three times the threshold for driving while intoxicated.
Investigators also reported that Manuel tested positive for THC, the primary psychoactive compound in marijuana. A positive THC test alone does not establish whether someone was impaired at the time of a crash.
Following the investigation, prosecutors filed two felony counts of operating a vehicle causing death with an alcohol concentration of 0.08% or greater and two felony counts of operating while intoxicated causing death.
Manuel also faces a felony count of operating while intoxicated resulting in serious bodily injury, along with misdemeanor charges involving impaired driving and operating a vehicle with a controlled substance in her system.
The case has left multiple families grieving, including Manuel’s own family, which lost one daughter while another now faces the possibility of a lengthy prison sentence.
Dearborn County Prosecutor Lynn Deddens emphasized the consequences of impaired driving while announcing the charges.
“Two young women lost their lives, another was seriously injured, and several families will forever be affected by what occurred that night,” Deddens said.
Manuel appeared in court for her initial hearing on October 14, approximately four months after the crash.
Judge Jonathan Cleary set her bond at $5 million cash, an unusually high amount reflecting the seriousness of the charges.
She remains in custody at the Dearborn County Jail as the criminal case moves forward.
Authorities have not announced a trial date.
The deaths of Kimora Manuel and Le’Marea Holmes underscore the risks of impaired driving, particularly when combined with dangerous passing maneuvers on two-lane highways.
