Elio Diogenes was found not guilty on charges tied to a crash that killed 60-year-old Wanda Hargrove on Louisville's Outer Loop. Diogenes had faced charges of second-degree manslaughter and wanton endangerment stemming from the collision near Grade Lane.
According to WLKY, police said Diogenes crashed into a car that was pulling out from a business entrance on Outer Loop near Grade Lane. Hargrove died several days after the crash, per the same report. The verdict brings a close to the legal proceedings following the collision.
The crash itself unfolded in July 2024 in the 1900 block of Outer Loop, when a car pulled out from a business driveway and was struck by another vehicle, according to WHAS11. Hargrove suffered life-threatening injuries and died several days later, the station reported.
What Prosecutors Had to Prove
Prosecutors pursued charges in the case. Second-degree manslaughter under Kentucky Revised Statute 507.040 is a Class C felony that carries five to ten years in prison for wantonly causing a death, including through motor vehicle operation, according to JPS Law.
Wanton endangerment was also among the charges. The sources cited here do not detail the prosecution's specific burden on that charge. The reports also do not detail the reasoning behind the not-guilty result.
A Roadway With a Troubled Safety Record
Outer Loop, where the crash occurred, is a Louisville roadway. The available sources do not specify its roadway designation, safety-network status, collision statistics or speed-limit recommendations.
The crash reports describe a business entrance on Outer Loop near Grade Lane, but the available sources do not provide a Kentucky Transportation Cabinet corridor study, traffic-volume figures or a truck percentage for the area.
Those roadway conditions were not the subject of criminal charges in the case, and the reports describe a car pulling out from a business entrance before the crash. Whether jurors weighed the road's design alongside driver behavior during deliberations is not detailed in available reporting. What is clear is that the verdict closes the criminal chapter of a case that began with a fatal crash on a Louisville corridor and ended with Diogenes not being found guilty on the reported charges.
