BY KRISTEN DELGUZZI
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Tracie Alfieri

The case of Tracie Alfieri was billed as a test of Ohio's new fetal homicide law. It was cited as an aggressive attack on so-called "road rage."

In the end, though, neither was a factor in the jury's decision Friday to convict Mrs. Alfieri of aggravated vehicular homicide and aggravated vehicular assault.

''Those were not an issue to us," said juror Howard Hunt, a retired Kentucky police officer. "We were able to put our emotions aside and focus on the law." his 11 fellow jurors were asked to decide whether Mrs. Alfieri drove her Grand Am recklessly in November when she slammed on her brakes in front of another motorist who had cut her off minutes earlier.

After nine hours of deliberations - almost three hours of which were spent listening to a rereading of the testimony of two witnesses - jurors concluded that the 24-year-old Mount Washington woman had shown a "heedless indifference to the consequences" when she abruptly braked in front of Rene Andrews on Nov. 27.

''Justice was done," said Gerald Krumpelbeck, an assistant Hamilton County prosecutor, who was not required by law to prove that Mrs. Alfieri meant to injure Mrs. Andrews or kill her unborn child.

Prosecutors said the so-called brake job was meant to retaliate against Mrs. Andrews, who had cut in front of Mrs. Alfieri as the two drove along Red Bank Road. Once on Interstate 71, Mrs. Alfieri sped ahead, merging in front of Mrs. Andrews, 29, of Madisonville.

When Mrs. Andrews merged, Mrs. Alfieri quickly hit her brakes in an act of "road rage," prosecutors said, a term used to describe aggressive, hostile acts of revenge on the highways.

Mrs. Andrews, who was 25 weeks pregnant, swerved to avoid a collision, lost control of her car and skidded into a disabled truck. She broke numerous bones in her legs and arms and suffered massive internal injuries. Her unborn boy died when the placenta tore away.

Mrs. Alfieri is the first local person - and only the second in the state - to be convicted under the new law that makes it a crime to kill or harm a fetus. The law, which became effective in September, was inspired by the 1995 death of a pregnant Middletown woman, who was killed along with her unborn child in a car crash on Interstate 275.

Prior to trial, defense attorneys unsuccessfully asked that the homicide charge be dismissed, saying the new law was unconstitutional. They will pursue that argument in higher courts. No appellate court has scrutinized the law, and the Ohio Supreme Court ultimately will be asked to pass judgment.

As the verdict was read, Mrs. Alfieri moved her lips slightly, but she sat motionless through the rest of the proceedings.

She will remain free on bond until she is sentenced by Common Pleas Judge Patrick Dinkelacker on May 21. She faces a maximum of 6ï years in prison, although she could be placed on probation.

Both Mrs. Alfieri and Mrs. Andrews declined to comment as they left the courthouse.

Defense attorney Tim Schneider, who argued that the crash was truly an accident, said he will ask the judge to opt for probation for Mrs. Alfieri, who has no prior record and no previous contacts with the justice system.

''She's not a criminal as we all know typical criminals, and she has no reason to be in a penitentiary," he said. "She does not need to be rehabilitated."

He said his client, who is married with two children, is "terribly upset. She now knows it's up to the judge whether she sees her children."

During the weeklong trial, the defense argued that Mrs. Alfieri was braking for slower traffic ahead of her - not to antagonize Mrs. Andrews. It also said part of the blame fell to Mrs. Andrews for failing to maintain an assured clear distance in which to stop.

Mr. Hunt said he and the other jurors considered that scenario, but ultimately decided it was not credible. He said there was no single piece of evidence or testimony that was key to their decision.

He also said the case was highly emotional for jurors, some of whom left the courthouse in tears. The verdict, he said, brought "relief and sadness. A lot of sadness."

''A lot of lives have been affected - not just the two people involved - and we realize that," Mr. Hunt said. "It was very sensitive for us."

Previous stories

JURY MULLS: ROAD RAGE OR ACCIDENT? May 2, 1997
DRIVER DENIES CAUSING CRASH May 1, 1997
INJURED WOMAN RECALLS LITTLE April 30, 1997
ACCUSED'S DRIVING AT TRIAL'S CORE April 29, 1997
2 TRIALS, 2 CONTROVERSIES April 27, 1997
WOMAN PLEADS NOT GUILTY IN CRASH THAT CLAIMED FETUS Jan. 4, 1997
DRIVER INDICTED Jan. 3, 1997