Chemung County Man Guilty of Manslaughter in Tompkins County

A Van Etten man is guilty of manslaughter following a head-on crash in Tompkins County almost a year ago.

A non-jury trial for James Crosby ended in the guilty verdict December 24.  Crosby was driving in the Town of Newfield on New Year’s Eve when he lost control on a slippery road and hit a Jeep driven by 31 year old Samantha Aarnio of Spencer.

Crosby’s passenger, 20 year old Derek Nichols and Aarnio’s mother-in-law, 67 year old Kathy Lattimore died as a result of the crash.

Sentencing for Crosby is set for March 20.

Following the verdict, Crosby was fitted with a monitoring device and placed under home confinement.