Man faces DUI charges in Plum crash that killed Tarentum pair

A Saltsburg man was driving under the influence when he caused a deadly head-on crash in Plum last month, killing a junior firefighter and his girlfriend's 43-year-old mother from Tarentum, according to police.

Edward Cass III, 25, turned himself in Friday, the same day Allegheny County homicide detectives issued a warrant for his arrest.

Cass is charged with two counts each of homicide by vehicle and involuntary manslaughter and one count each of driving under the influence, aggravated assault by vehicle, aggravated assault by vehicle while driving under the influence, homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence, reckless driving, possession of a controlled substance and traffic violations.

Police said Cass was driving on Route 286 on Aug. 6 when he crossed the center line and crashed into an SUV driven by Beth Ann Beveridge. Beveridge's 19-year-old daughter and her daughter's boyfriend, 17-year-old Michael Zier, also were in the vehicle.

Beveridge and Zier were killed in the crash. The 19-year-old woman was treated and later released from Forbes Hospital. Zier was a junior firefighter in Tarentum and would have been a senior at Highlands High School.

Megan Guza is a Tribune-Review staff writer.