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Judge follows jury recommendation, sentences Greis to 20 years in crash that killed family of five


NKyTribune staff

Kenton Circuit Judge Patricia Summe this week followed the recommendation of the jury and sentenced Daniel Greis to 20 years in prison.

Daniel Greis dabs his eyes following the June 29 guilty verdict on five counts of murder in the deaths of five members of the Pollitt family (file photo).

Greis was found guilty of five counts of murder June 29, in a crash that killed a family in October in southern Kenton County.

Greis, 58, had a blood alcohol content of .089, had marijuana in his system and was traveling 86 miles an hour on the wrong side of Staffordsburg Road when he struck a Honda Accord driven by Rodney Pollitt, Jr. in October.

Pollitt, 26, his fiancé, Samantha Malohn, 27, and their three children, Halieann, 9, Brenden, 8, and Callie Pollitt, 6, were all pronounced dead at the scene.

It took a jury less than five hours to come back with a verdict of guilty on all five five counts. The jury recommended that the sentences be served concurrently.

Greis will be eligible for parole in 17 years after serving 85 percent of his sentence. He will be 75 years old.

Kenton Commonwealth’s Attorney Rob Sanders issued the following statement that provides details that led to Greis’s conviction:

On October 26, 2017, Kenton County Police and Independence Fire District responded to a two-vehicle crash on Staffordsburg Road between Visalia Road and KY16.

First responders arrived to find a horrific crash with a debris field scattered over hundreds of yards. Two adult occupants of a Honda Accord seated in the front of the car were obviously deceased. The Accord was crushed so severely Good Samaritans on the scene could not even tell there were three children in the rear seat.

Vivian Cooper, Samantha Malohn’s grandmother, breaks down as she talks with reporters following the June 29, guilty verdict.

Firefighters removed an 8 year old boy because he was the only one not obviously deceased but soon after beginning life saving efforts, paramedics realized he, too, had sustained injuries incompatible with life and he was declared deceased. His 9 and 6 year old sisters, as well as his parents, all had to be cut from the Accord to free their bodies for Coroner removal.

The driver of the other vehicle, a gray Honda Pilot, was removed from the overturned SUV by bystanders because it was on fire. Civilians, police, and firefighters all noticed the odor of alcohol on his person.

Marijuana was found in his shirt pocket. The driver was flown by medical helicopter to University of Cincinnati Medical Center for treatment of his injuries which included fractured bones.

At the hospital, Daniel Edward Greis, 57, of Independence, told Kenton County Police Sgt. Curtis Bush he had consumed “a double” of bourbon on ice while golfing earlier in the day. Greis also admitted to smoking marijuana in the morning when he got off work. Subsequent investigation revealed Greis had not slept in nearly 24 hours prior. Greis denied additional drug/alcohol consumption, excessive speed, road rage, or passing other vehicles was a factor in the crash.

Kenton County Police “Serious Traffic Accident Reconstruction” (STAR) team was called in to reconstruct the crash.

Led by Sgt. Chris Haddle,STAR investigators determined Greis was doing 86 MPH in a 55 MPH zone, one second prior to impact. They also determined the crash was directly head-on in the Accord’s lane of travel.

A witness told police Greis was attempting to pass his pick-up truck on the wrong side of the double-yellow line when the crash occurred. Kentucky State Police “Critical Incident Response Team” was called to assist Kenton County Police. The crash scene was photographed, filmed, plotted, and diagramed to an accuracy of 2mm.

A camera equipped drone was even flown over the entire road from Visalia to the crash site so Greis’ entire path of travel was documented. Detectives also located a witness who said Greis also passed her and another car in front of her on the wrong side of the double yellow line, minutes prior to causing the fatal crash.

Kenton County Police Detective Aaron Schihl obtained a warrant for Greis’ arrest charging him with 5 counts of Murder.

With a photo of the Pollitt family in the background, Kenton Commonwealth’s Attorney Rob Sanders chokes back tears during the sentencing phase of the Daniel Greis trial June 29 (click to enlarge).

The warrant was not executed until Greis was released from the hospital days later. Greis was subsequently indicted by the Kenton County Grand Jury on the same charges. The case was called to trial before Kenton Circuit Judge Patricia Summe on June 19, 208. Over the course of the following two weeks, Commonwealth’s Attorney Rob Sanders and Asst. Commonwealth’s Attorney Maria Schletker presented dozens of witnesses from Kenton County Police, Kentucky State Police, Independence Fire District, University of Kentucky Medical Center Pathology Dept., Hamilton County Coroner’s Office, and numerous bystanders at the crash scene. 

The defense attempted to blame the crash on the driver of the pick-up Greis was attempting to pass at the time of the collision. The defense claimed the pick-up sped up and slowed down repeatedly to prevent Greis from returning to his side of the road. On cross-examination by the Commonwealth’s Attorney, however, the defense’s own crash reconstruction expert admitted the defense theory of the case would have made it impossible for the defendant to reach 86 MPH one second prior to impact.

The defense expert also agreed with Kenton County Police and Kentucky State Police experts who said the defendant was going so fast that his SUV’s front wheels were losing contact with the roadway in the last second before the crash. The SUV was actually beginning to jump when it collided with the Accord and rode up the hood, shearing the roof off the Accord, and killing all occupants.

After four hours of deliberations, the jury returned a verdict finding Greis guilty of all 5 murders. Greis had no prior criminal history to introduce at sentencing but family members of both the victims and the defendant testified during the sentencing phase. After 45 minutes of deliberations, the jury then recommended a 20 year sentence. 

On August 27, 2018, the Defendant appeared again before Judge Summe for formal, final sentencing. After brief arguments from both parties, the judge followed the jury’s recommendation and sentenced Greis to 20 years in prison. Under Kentucky law, Greis must serve 17 years in prison before becoming eligible for parole.


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