An Ohio State Patrol trooper has been indicted on vehicular manslaughter and vehicular homicide charges in connection with a Jan. 4 head-on crash that killed a 36-year-old man.

The two misdemeanor charges were filed Tuesday against Jeremy Ault in a Clermont County court.

Authorities said Ault was in his police cruiser when he went left of center on Route 222 in Batavia and hit another car head-on.

The crash left 36-year-old Anthony Bertram dead at the scene and the 27-year-old trooper with two broken ankles.

Bertram was on his way to his home in Goshen, having just finished playing poker with friends.

Investigators confirmed that Ault, who joined the Batavia Post nearly two years ago, was on his way to respond to a possible impaired driver on Route 52 when his cruiser crossed the center line along Route 222 near Diana Avenue and hit Bertram head-on.

He had not activated his lights or siren, so there is no dashcam video. It was raining at the time of the crash, according to investigators.

Both Ault and Bertram were wearing seat belts when the collision occurred.

There is no estimate yet about the speed at which each was traveling.

Follow this story to get instant e-mail alerts from WLWT on the latest developments and related topics.