An Ohio driver who made an online video confessing to causing a fatal wrong-way crash after drinking heavily was scheduled to make his first court appearance Tuesday.
In a 3 1/2-minute video posted last week, Matthew Cordle admitted he killed a man from a Columbus suburb and said he "made a mistake" when he decided to drive that night.
"My name is Matthew Cordle, and on June 22nd, 2013, I hit and killed Vincent Canzani," he says somberly. "This video will act as my confession."
Cordle, of Powell, another Columbus suburb, was due to appear in Franklin County court Tuesday afternoon after being charged with aggravated vehicular homicide a day earlier and turning himself in. Cordle also is charged with a misdemeanor count of operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol.
He could plead guilty as early as Tuesday but might also have to wait for his case to be assigned to a permanent judge.
Franklin County prosecutor Ron O'Brien said Cordle faces up to 8 1/2 years in prison if convicted.
Cordle's attorneys on Monday downplayed any suggestion that Cordle made the video in hopes of winning a light sentence. But a harsh sentence could also send the wrong message to people trying to take responsibility for crimes, they said.