COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – The case of a Montgomery man who is charged in connection with a fatal Ovid Township accident last October was scheduled to go to trial next Tuesday.
But a plea hearing in the case of 32-year-old Michael Daniel Penza has been scheduled for next Monday afternoon in Branch County Circuit Court.
Penza has been charged with second degree homicide, OWI causing death, possession of methamphetamine and possession of marijuana, second offense following a Michigan State Police investigation into the two vehicle traffic accident that took the life of 54-year-old Brenda Hutchison of Coldwater.
According to troopers, a 2007 Chevrolet Impala driven by Hutchison was northbound on Centennial Road when it was struck head-on near Lockwood Road by a full-size black SUV driven by Penza that had crossed the center line.
Hutchison and Penza had to be extricated from their vehicles. Hutchison was pronounced dead at the scene. Penza was airlifted to Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo, while his daughter was taken to the Community Health Center of Branch County for treatment.
