Alpha Diallo

ANN ARBOR, MI - A 41-year-old Columbus, Ohio man accused of causing a fatal crash while distracted by a Facebook quiz on his smartphone was found guilty on six counts Friday, Oct. 13.

After a four-day trial, a jury found Alpha Oumar Diallo guilty of three felonies and three misdemeanors of the original nine counts he faced.

The jury - made up of 10 men and two women - found Diallo not guilty on one count of operating while intoxicated causing death and two counts of operating while intoxicated causing serious injury.

Assistant Washtenaw County Prosecutor Brenda Taylor argued Diallo was under the influence of oxycodone and impaired when he crashed his semi truck into stopped traffic on U.S. 23, killing one and seriously injuring two July 8, 2015.

Authorities found evidence of the painkiller in his blood after the crash, according to Taylor. Attorneys argued about the effect the 9 nanograms of oxycodone had on Diallo's driving.

While the jury didn't convict on those charges, they did find Diallo guilty of reckless driving causing death and two counts of reckless driving causing serious impairment of bodily function.

A forensic search of Diallo's cellphone showed he had opened his Facebook app and clicked on a quiz entitled, "What Country in the World Best Fits Your Personality" just seconds before the crash, according to Taylor.

A witness testified Diallo didn't brake before slamming into a white Toyota Corolla, killing the passenger, 83-year-old Edyth Ellsworth, and seriously injuring the driver, Ellsworth's daughter, Carolyn Darnielle.

Diallo, driving an empty Kroger semi truck, also hit a black Chevy Impala, seriously injuring Kenneth Revoir. His wife was also injured in the crash.

Taylor argued that the pain pills combined with the phone distraction caused the crash.

"He was not at all attentive as to what was happening in front of his 30,000-pound vehicle," she said.

Reckless driving causing death is punishable by 15 years in prison.

The jury also found Diallo guilty of three similar misdemeanors.

Diallo took the stand Friday morning, telling jurors how he escaped war-torn Sierra Leone in the 1990s and came to America, where he became a cab driver before getting his truck driver certification in 2007.

Diallo said he didn't recall taking the Facebook quiz, though he did admit to taking one pain pill around 9 p.m. July 7, 2015 after he finished fasting for Ramadan.

Diallo testified he suffers from sickle cell anemia, which causes "shooting pain" all over his body from time to time. A doctor prescribes him the oxycodone for this condition.

He picked up his truck's load from Delaware, Ohio, unloading it in Jackson and White Lake, he testified. He was headed to Columbus, Ohio from White Lake on southbound U.S. 23, just after noon the next day when the crash occurred in York Township near Willis Road, according to testimony.

Diallo confessed he was speeding, having set his cruise control for 65 mph when the limit for trucks then was 60 mph. He attempted to pass another semi truck and didn't notice that traffic had backed up as a result of construction, according to testimony.

Diallo said he didn't see the cars he hit until the very last second. He broke down in tears on the stand while recounting the story.

"I would never, ever get my CDL license in the first place," he said. "I wish you met me before the accident. I wish I could take this back."

Diallo's attorney, Michael Rex, argued that the crash was a tragic accident.

Closing statements from the attorneys wrapped up around noon Friday. The jury had a verdict just after 4 p.m.

Diallo is set to be sentenced Dec. 6. He remains free on a $25,000 personal recognizance bond.