No charges filed over musician’s death | News, sports, jobs

YOUNGSTOWN – No charges will be filed in the death of a musician struck by a vehicle in July, authorities say.

Lt. Eric Brown of the Ohio State Highway Patrol’s Canfield Post said the investigation into the death of Sean Ryan Baran has been completed and the department will not be filing charges against Richard Weimer, the driver of the car that struck him.

The July 26 crash report shows that Baran, 35, was killed when he entered Market Street at Fairview Avenue, near Midlothian Boulevard, and was struck by Weimer’s Volkswagen Jetta.

The case accompanying Baran’s death certificate – issued by the Mahoning County Coroner’s Office on September 30 – shows that paramedics found him dead in the street upon arrival.

Weimer told police he was driving at or below the posted speed limit of 60 mph when Baran ran in front of his car. There is no stop sign at that intersection for traffic along Market Street.

The certificate states that the cause of death was “blunt force injuries with intestinal, vascular and skeletal injuries.” The description includes blunt force injuries to his head and neck, fractures to his ribs and sternum, a severed aorta, ruptured spleen, multiple internal bleeding and broken limbs.

The coroner’s report also shows that the Cuyahoga County medical examiner who performed the autopsy on Baran found marijuana compounds in his system.

However, Brown as well as coroner and medical examiner officials say that does not mean Baran was drunk at the time of the crash.

“It is well known that the effects of prescription medications, alcohol and illicit drugs can vary widely from person to person due to many factors,” said Octavious Jones, an investigator with the Mahoning County coroner’s office.

“The toxicology findings alone will not allow you to determine the extent of damage,” said Cuyahoga County toxicologist Luigino Appolonio. “There is a detected and confirmed psychoactive component in the blood (Delta-9 THC), but the other elements will determine the degree of disorder.”

He said these elements would include witness statements about the person’s behavior prior to his death. Brown said the investigation did not produce any evidence to reach a conclusion one way or the other.

“Marijuana can stay in your system for a while. Without any personal interaction with the deceased prior to the crash, or without sobriety testing, it would be difficult to say this was a factor,” he said.

Baran was well known and loved in the Youngstown and regional music communities. He graduated summa cum laude from Youngstown State University’s Dana School of Music with a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in music performance. He was an organist at Boardman United Methodist Church and was a resident artist at the Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center in Midland, Pennsylvania, where he directed the piano program for the Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School.

His biography on the Boardman United Methodist Church website states that Baran was secretary of the Youngstown Music Teachers Association, vice president of student activities for the Ohio Music Teachers Association Middle East District and District 1 Junior Counselor for the Ohio Federation of Music Clubs . He was also a member of the American Guild of Organists and previously served on the executive committee of the Youngstown Chapter.