Driver dead in U.S. 223 car-semi crash may have killed girlfriend first, authorities believe

By Melissa Burnor
OTTAWA LAKE — Investigators from think a man who died in a fatal accident Monday in Whiteford Township may have killed his girlfriend earlier before his life ended when his vehicle crossed the center line on U.S. 223 into the path of an oncoming tractor-trailer.
Mark Herrick, 44, Howell, was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash on U.S. 223 just east of Memorial Highway at about 2:21 p.m. Monday. The Livingston County Sheiiff’s Department is investigating the alleged homicide of the man’s live-in girlfriend after her body was discovered in her residence in Osceola when she failed to show up for work earlier in the day.
Monroe County Sheriff’s deputy Brian Francisco, who is aiding in the crash investigation, said he could not say anything more about the incident other than the deceased driver had come from the Livingston County area.
Police said the man crossed the centerline in a 2013 Chevrolet Malibu and hit the 2013 Peterbilt semi-tractor trailer head on. He was ejected from his vehicle upon impact. The driver of the semi, Tyrone Garner, 49, Canton, was not injured.
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Department continues to investigate the crash while the homicide of the unidentified woman is under jurisdiction of the Livingston County Sheriff’s Department.
Updated 9:30 a.m. Nov. 20, 2013