A man convicted of firing at police officers and other motorists on a busy highway was sentenced to at least 25 years in prison Monday.
Jonathon Myers, 21, pleaded guilty in October to four counts of attempted aggravated murder, three counts of attempted murder, one count of felonious assault, and of discharging a firearm on or near prohibited premises.
He was initially indicted on 27 counts after crashing his car on the side of I-71 and firing gunshots at passing cars and officers who responded.
The incident began on March 11, prosecutors said, after another motorist followed Myers northbound on I-71 while attempting to take down the license plate information of the car Myers was in following a crash.
Prosecutors said Myers fired at least two gunshots at that motorist and then continued driving before coming to a stop, where Myers got out and began firing at southbound traffic.
Myers' attorney said his client had recently ingested ecstasy and Percocet and was suffering from hallucinations after being awake for a week due to drug use.
At least three vehicles were struck, police said, including a UPS truck and a van carrying two members of the Madison High School wrestling team and two coaches who were traveling to Ohio State University’s Schottenstein Center.
The third vehicle held 14 people inside.
Delaware County prosecutor Melissa Schiffel argued for consecutive sentences. Myers' attorney argued that his drug use induced his violent actions and that the court should consider mitigating circumstances,
A Delaware County judge sentenced Myers to 25-31.5 years in prison. Myers changed his plea to not guilty in October after previously seeking an insanity defense.