Arrest Made in 2023 Fatal Crash on State Route 13 in Veteran
An Ithaca woman has been arrested in connection with a 2023 multi-vehicle crash that claimed the life of a Millport man on State Route 13 in the town of Veteran.
The crash occurred on the morning of October 26, 2023, around 7:30 a.m., near Parrott Road. According to New York State Police, 41-year-old Juria S. Vanness was driving a 2016 Ford Fusion northbound when her vehicle crossed the double solid centerline into the southbound lane. She then attempted to return to the northbound lane but struck the driver's side of a trailer being towed by a 2019 Chevy Silverado, also headed north.
The Silverado, operated by 25-year-old Alexei G. Seymour of Millport, and the Fusion both veered into the southbound lane and into the path of an oncoming 2018 Freightliner truck. The impact caused lawn mowing equipment from the trailer to be ejected into the road, where it was struck by a 2021 Mack truck traveling southbound.
Seymour was pronounced dead at the scene. Vanness sustained minor injuries and was airlifted to Guthrie Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre, Pennsylvania.
Following an investigation, a Chemung County grand jury indicted Vanness on multiple charges on February 27, 2025. She faces two counts of vehicular manslaughter in the first degree—one based on a prior conviction within ten years and another for allegedly driving with a suspended or revoked license—both class C felonies. She is also charged with aggravated unlicensed operation in the first degree and driving while ability impaired by drugs, both class E felonies, as well as seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a class A misdemeanor.
A Superior Court warrant for her arrest was issued on March 14, 2025, and signed by Judge Ottavio Campanella. Vanness was taken into custody on March 25 at the State Police barracks in Horseheads and transported to the Chemung County Jail.
No court date has been publicly announced.