HAMILTON — Kenneth Strunk has four previous drunken-driving convictions, and police say he was driving drunk again Aug. 23 when his Rumpke garbage truck crashed head-on into another vehicle, killing a Butler County man.

        Mr. Strunk, 55, of Fairfield, was arrested Thursday and booked into the Butler County Jail on charges of aggravated vehicular homicide, driving under the influence and failure to control. The charges stem from a Ross Township crash that killed Charles Lawson, 69, of Hanover Township. His family couldn't be reached for comment Thursday.

        The charges against Mr. Strunk were filed after analyses on blood taken after the crash were completed, explained Monte Mayer, Butler County Sheriff's spokesman. Tests gauged Mr. Strunk's blood-alcohol level at 0.13, a report says, above Ohio's legal limit of 0.10.

        Larry Stone, safety director for Rumpke Consolidated Cos. Inc. of Colerain Township, said Mr. Strunk was fired Thursday, a day after the company learned about his blood-alcohol results. A Rumpke employee for 10 years, Mr. Strunk had been on unpaid suspension since the crash, which Mr. Stone described as “a somber day for us.”

        He said the company wished to extend its deepest sympathies to Mr. Lawson's family, saying the crash that killed him occurred despite the company's emphasis on safety and its efforts to ensure Rumpke drivers are unimpaired.

        The company checks employees' state driving records annually and conducts random drug and alcohol screenings, Mr. Stone said, noting that Mr. Strunk passed a random test in November 2001.

        Rumpke requires its drivers to be DUI-free for two years and meet other requirements, Mr. Stone said.

        Mr. Strunk's state driving record shows DUI convictions in 1982, 1989, 1991 and 1994.

        The first three convictions occurred before Rumpke hired Mr. Strunk.

        After the 1994 incident, which did not involve a commercial vehicle, Mr. Strunk was put in a “non-driving position,” Mr. Stone said. Mr. Strunk was required to undergo counseling and meet other criteria before being allowed to drive for Rumpke again, Mr. Stone said.

        Mr. Strunk normally began work between 4 and 5 a.m., but Mr. Stone didn't know how long Mr. Strunk had been driving while allegedly drunk the day of the 5:40 a.m. fatal collision.

        “I don't know how we can prevent someone from slipping into work that way if they really want to hide it,” Mr. Stone said.

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