A tragic incident unfolded this past Saturday, resulting in the death of Saelor Guistolisi, an 18-year-old from Crown Point, Indiana, who was ejected from a vehicle during a crash allegedly caused by intoxication and road rage; the driver Austin Thornton, also 18, is now facing multiple felony charges including operating while intoxicated causing death, according to WGN-TV. Guistolisi had recently graduated from high school and was remembered for her "fiery personality and a smile that would stop you in your tracks" on a GoFundMe page organized by family and friends, which has raised over $12,000 to aid with funeral expenses.
Witnesses told police that Thornton appeared to have "gotten road rage" after his truck was passed by another vehicle, which led him to attempt to overtake the vehicle in a no-passing zone and subsequent loss of control of the truck on a road bend, Guistolisi was then pronounced dead at the hospital from blunt force trauma to the head as stated by the Porter County Coroner’s Office, according to NWITimes.
The ill-fated day, which ended with Guistolisi's untimely departure, continues to reverberate through her community, as her family grapples with the loss of a daughter and sister extolled for her unmatched kindness, "Saelor was the most beautiful and kind person you could ever meet," her father Robert Guistolisi and sister Brooklin Guistolisi jointly stated by remembering the late teen's compassionate nature in an interview with NWITimes.
Thornton, now detained in Porter County Jail was described by police as having glassy, bloodshot eyes after the crash and he initially refused a chemical test a warrant for which resulted in a blood draw, and his forthcoming appearance before Porter Circuit Court Judge Rebecca Buitendorp is scheduled for Tuesday morning according to charging documents; the severity of the charges reflects the grave outcome of an incident that cut short a promising life repeatedly recognized for its luminosity and potential, and as her family said, "The world is a lot less bright without her in it".
