Vehicular homicide suspect Gerasimos Livieratos appeared in Christian County Circuit Court on Wednesday, where he was denied a bond reduction.
On March 7, Livieratos attempted to make a U-turn on Fort Campbell Boulevard, and Bernice Franklin of Clarksville collided with his semi-truck and was pronounced deceased at the scene.
Livieratos is charged with vehicular homicide while under the influence of drugs, possession of drug paraphernalia, operating a vehicle while under the influence of a substance, possession of marijuana and other traffic-related offenses.
Livieratos’ bond is currently $50,000, and his Defense Attorney, William Deatherage Jr., has requested that it be lowered to $10,000. Special Prosecutor Chris Woodall says he believes the bond should stay at $50,000 because Livieratos’ actions led to someone’s death.
However, Deatherage implied that Livieratos is not solely responsible for Franklin’s death and claimed that his car was traveling at a high rate of speed before hitting the semi-truck.
Prior to the fatal accident, Woodall says law enforcement received reports from other drivers claiming that Livieratos was driving poorly.
Woodall also shared that Livieratos was tested for alcohol, which was negative, but officers believe he was under the influence of marijuana. He says a SoToxa test was done, which reportedly showed that Livieratos had cannabis in his system, but they are still waiting for blood test results.
Circuit Judge Andrew Self says the current bond is appropriate because they still do not have the black box from Livieratos’ semi-truck, which will reveal more information about the wreck.
Livieratos will reappear in court on July 22.