SpringfieldNewsSun.com

Springfield, Ohio — A motorist in the nine-car pileup that took the lives of three Urbana University students last year says the impact of the crash had forced his body into his vehicle's air bag, bursting it, and left him trapped in his vehicle.

"I was in a panic for my life," Jonathan Wilkerson, 42, testified Wednesday in the trial of Jason Skaggs, who is charged with three counts of aggravated vehicular homicide and two counts of aggravated vehicular assault in connection with the crash.

"I couldn't get my door open...I could smell gas, Wilkerson said."

Wilkerson sustained leg and back injuries in the crash at Urbana and Moorefield roads on March 8, 2007. He was driving a Crown Victoria when his vehicle was struck from behind in the collision.

The two counts of aggravated vehicular assault against Skaggs, 36, stem from the injuries suffered by Wilkerson and another motorist, Clark County Prosecutor Stephen Schumaker has said.

The crash sounded like "an explosion,...thunder or something," Wilkerson said.

"I didn't see anything coming," he said.

Wilkerson said his injuries forced a career change from a job as a press operator, an occupation that required him to stand for several hours at a time.

"(The crash) took me out of the game," he said. "I have a lot of physical problems. I haven't been able to back to work because of it."

Yan "Zoe" Sun and Bing "Jo" Xue, both 24, and Jin "Jack" Bian, 27, were killed in the collision. All three were Chinese natives.

If convicted on all charges, Skaggs could face up to 34 years in prison.

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0360 or vlough@coxohio.com.