93 Year-Old North Dakota Driver Cited in Fatal Crash Arrested Again

An elderly Oberon, N.D., woman who was fined $20 for causing a fatal crash in Benson County faces a possible jail sentence after being arrested on new traffic charges in Ramsey County.

Faith Mitzel, who turned 93 on Aug. 4, was stopped a day earlier just inside the Devils Lake city limits after failing to use a turn signal and arrested for driving with a suspended license and not having liability insurance, Sheriff’s Deputy Ross Walther told KZZY radio.

Mitzel said she was not aware her license was suspended.

“That’s the first time I have drove” since the fatal crash, she told the Grand Forks Herald.

Mitzel’s vehicle was impounded. She was released on her own recognizance and was due in court Aug. 2. She faces up to 60 days in jail and $2,000 in fines if convicted on the misdemeanor charges, along with a $20 fine on the turn signal citation.

Mitzel was cited for driving on the wrong side of the road in the May 19 crash that fatally injured a pregnant woman and resulted in a man having his foot amputated. She initially said she would contest her fine but later changed her mind.

Mitzel said she still thinks she did not do anything wrong and should be able to drive.