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SAULT STE. MARIE -- A man from Lower Michigan as been arraigned in connection with a traffic fatality Monday in the eastern Upper Peninsula. At approximately 10:48 a.m. Monday, a trooper from the Michigan State Police (MSP) Sault Ste. Marie Post responded to a report of a two-vehicle head-on crash on W. Lakeshore Drive near W. Lake Street Loop in Bay Mills Township.
The preliminary investigation indicates a Chevrolet Trailblazer was traveling westbound on W. Lakeshore Drive when it crossed the centerline and crashed head-on with an eastbound Ford Fiesta.
The driver of the Ford Fiesta, a 62-year-old woman from Lake, Michigan, was pronounced deceased at the scene. The driver of the Chevrolet Trailblazer, a 46-year-old man Aaron Peterson from downstate McBain, displayed signs of intoxication during the on-scene investigation. He was arrested for Operating While Intoxicated Causing Death and Operating While License Suspended.
Due to the injuries sustained in the crash, the suspect was transported to MyMichigan Medical Center Sault and later transferred to Petoskey for further treatment.
Following medical clearance and release from McLaren Northern Michigan Hospital in Petoskey, Peterson was taken to Chippewa County Jail. On Friday he was arraigned in the 91st District Court on one count of Operating While Intoxicated Causing Death and one count of Operating While License Suspended Causing Death.
Bond was set at $250,000 cash with a tether and other standard conditions. He is next scheduled to appear in court on July 27, 2026. The defendant is considered innocent unless proven guilty.