In brief: A 34-year-old woman whose Chevrolet 1500 Silverado accelerated onto a youth soccer field at the Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita on Oct. 17 will not face criminal charges, Sedgwick County Dist. Atty. Marc Bennett concluded. The woman was napping with her seat fully reclined when the truck, left in drive rather than park, moved after her foot likely pressed the gas pedal. Cole Adrian, 6, and Nicholas Schafer, 35, both of McPherson, Kan., were killed; ten others were treated at hospitals. Bennett said no vehicular manslaughter charge could be supported under state law from a single negligent act.
Key questions
Why won’t the napping driver in the Wichita soccer field crash be charged?
Dist. Atty. Marc Bennett said that even one negligent act is not enough under Kansas law to pursue vehicular manslaughter, and there was no evidence she knew the truck was still in drive or had any motive to cause harm.
What did investigators find about the driver’s condition at the time of the crash?
Blood tests showed no evidence of drugs or anything that impaired her judgment, and more than 30 witnesses were interviewed; the driver said she awoke disoriented to screams and tried but failed to depress the brake.
Source: latimes.com — Napping driver whose truck accelerated on Kansas soccer field, killing 2, won't be charged. Also reported by The Washington Post.
AI-assisted summary; the reporting is the source's. Read the original at the link.
vehicular accident, criminal charges, Kansas, soccer field crash, Wichita
