Wrong way collision kills two, sends infant to hospital on I-75

Marks from cleanup remain on the southbound lanes of I-75 near Cody Estey Road after a two-vehicle wrong-way collision that killed the driver of each vehicle and sent a four-month-old to the hospital with life threatening injuries in Pinconning Township on Dec. 28, 2016. (Jacob Hamilton | The Bay City Times)

(Jacob Hamilton)

Jessica A. Leitner

BAY CITY, MI -- Officials are tight-lipped on the question of why a mother who drunkenly drove with her week-old son in the car was allowed to drive with the baby just a few months later, this time driving into oncoming traffic in a fatal crash.

The early evening of Dec. 27, 38-year-old Jessica A. Leitner was driving a 2003 Chevrolet Impala south on Interstate-75 with her four-month-old son Jordan Leitner unsecured in the car. Leitner eventually did a U-turn and drove into oncoming traffic at a high rate of speed, colliding head-on with a 2017 Buick Lacrosse driven by George R. Garske, 83, and containing his 54-year-old daughter Ann Lynn Garske. Medical personnel pronounced Jessica Leitner and Ann Garske dead at the scene. George Garske was hospitalized and has been improving.

Jordan Leitner was born Aug. 6, 2016. Just seven days later, Arenac County Sheriff's deputies found him unsecured in the front seat of a Pontiac Grand Prix driven by his mother when she was pulled over for improper lane use. Leitner had a blood alcohol level of 0.27 at the time, according to court records. In Michigan, a person is legally intoxicated when his or her blood alcohol level reaches 0.08. A person is "super drunk" when his or her blood alcohol level hits 0.17.

Leitner was arraigned in Arenac County District Court on charges of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, child endangerment, driving without insurance, driving on a suspended license, and driving with an open intoxicant. In October, she pleaded guilty to driving while intoxicated and driving on a suspended license, and subsequently received a 45-day jail sentence. She was released Nov. 22. At the time of her death, she was on probation in both Arenac and Bay counties.

Bob Wheaton, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, said his agency is prohibited by law from discussing specific cases involving Child Protective Services, or even confirming if an individual or family has such a case.

"Whenever our CPS is notified of possible abuse or neglect, we take a look at the circumstances and investigate it if an investigation is warranted," Wheaton said. "If we find abuse and neglect, then we determine what course of action to take to keep the child safe. Our goal is to keep families together if that can happen safely."

If necessary, CPS provides services such as mental health counseling and substance abuse treatment. Then, if at all possible, the agency develops a safety plan to keep the child in his or her home while those services are rendered, Wheaton said.

"If we determine it's not safe for the child to remain at home, the procedure for us is to petition the local courts to put that child in foster care," he continued. "At that point, court makes the final decision."

As all records pertaining to CPS cases are confidential, Wheaton could not comment on Leitner's situation.

Arenac County Prosecutor Curtis Broughton said parents typically don't face sanctions regarding their children at the district court-level, which is where Leitner's case stayed.

Who had custody of Jordan while his mother was serving her jail sentence is also a murky matter. Records indicate Leitner was most recently living at the Prescott home of her parents.

Barry Stutesman, Leitner's father and Jordan's grandfather, has used his Facebook page to provide updates on his grandson's condition.

"Thank you all for prayers and words...they are making us strong and holding us together," Stutesman wrote on Dec. 30. "Little Jordan feels your love ..he has been clutching tightly his favorite 'blankie' we placed beside him....His Dr.s, nurses and attendants are amazing....they are 'angels on earth'...We praise God that he was brought here..Praise the Lord that Drs were able to remove his neck brace.....Jordan's second surgery on his legs begins at 9:30 this morning....Please pray for our little one and all the young children here at Mott Children's Hospital in the ICU... and .all the innocent little ones and there families here at Mott...."

On Jan. 7, Jeremy A. Lane started a GoFundMe account entitled "Jordan's Healthcare Fund." Lane is a videographer and an employee of Stutesman, who co-founded Michigan Magazine/TV.

"Because of the head injury that Jordan has, we don't know what may spring from this accident," Lane wrote. "The money will go to anything down the line for him -- Medical or whatever else the Family may see that Jordan will need as time goes on."

The page's stated goal is $20,000. As of 11 a.m. on Jan. 9, four people have donated $115.

Speaking with The Times, Lane said Jordan had surgery on his legs and suffered a stroke and seizures soon after his hospitalization.

"He's improving," Lane said, adding the family is "ecstatic to see improvements."

He added that he had been close to Jessica Leitner, but his contact with her had been reduced in the last few months of her life.

"When I first knew her, she had a very bubbly personality and had a positive outlook on life," Lane said. "The past couple of years, she had taken some kind downward spiral in her life. She just said there were things going on in her life she didn't really want to talk about."

Ann Lynn Garske

The Times has been unable to contact Stutesman directly.

Ann Garske's funeral was planned for Thursday, Jan. 5, at St. Dominic Parish-St. Stephen Catholic Church, 2711 Mackinaw St. in Saginaw.

"She was employed at HealthSource Saginaw for many years," her obituary states. "Ann enjoyed cross-stitching, cooking, caring for animals, cross-country skiing and loved time spent with family and friends."

Police have not commented on what might have prompted Leitner to turn her car into traffic. A fellow motorist, Ryan Strohkirch, told The Times he saw Leitner driving 90 to 100 mph prior to the collision.

Police are awaiting toxicology results before closing their investigation. It could 60 to 90 days from the date of the crash for investigators to receive those reports, said Michigan State Police Special 1st Lt. David Kaiser.