A 34-year-old woman who fell asleep in a parked vehicle before it accelerated onto a youth soccer field in Kansas last month, killing two people and injuring others, will not face criminal charges, officials announced according to NBC News.
Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett said that a nearly month-long investigation into the crash found no evidence of an intentional crime or criminal recklessness, describing the event as a tragic civil matter.
The Oct. 17 incident at the Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita resulted in the deaths of 6-year-old Cole Adrian and 35-year-old Nicholas Schafer, both of McPherson, Kansas, who were not related (as reported by KMUW).
The crash also injured 10 people according to NBC News, with ages ranging from 5 to 68 years old as reported by KMUW, though Bennett said that none of those injured were facing critical injuries at the time of the briefing.
Investigation Findings and Timeline
Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan and District Attorney Bennett outlined the timeline and forensic findings during a news conference according to ABC News.
The driver had left Garden City, Kansas, around 7 a.m. in her husband’s Chevrolet Silverado to travel over 200 miles to Wichita for her children’s soccer games as reported by ABC News and KMUW. She regularly used another vehicle, but borrowed the truck because her own car had tire issues according to ABC News.
The family arrived at the sports complex around 10:40 a.m., later leaving around 1:20 p.m. to get lunch and run errands before returning to a crowded parking lot as reported by KMUW and ABC News.
Inside the vehicle, the driver told her children she was going to take a nap and reclined her seat according to NBC News. One child went to warm up for a game, while a 14-year-old child placed a sunshade over the windshield as reported by NBC News.
Investigators explored whether the woman may have been asleep, moved in her sleep, and inadvertently shifted the vehicle from park into drive according to NBC News. The truck was parked facing a 7-inch curb with a straight line toward the soccer field sideline as reported by NBC News.
Testing and reenactments with automotive technicians showed that the truck could remain in the parking spot against the curb even if left in drive, but that even light pressure on the accelerator brought the vehicle over the curb and onto the field according to KMUW and ABC News.
Toxicology and Mechanical Checks Show No Impairment or Malfunction
Authorities conducted extensive checks, including toxicology screenings by the Sedgwick County Regional Forensic Science Center that showed no impairing substances, and medical examinations that revealed no outstanding health issues as reported by KMUW and ABC News. A General Motors engineer and technician also flew to Wichita and examined the vehicle, finding no mechanical malfunctions or recalls according to NBC News and KMUW.
“I can not only find no evidence of an intentional crime, I can find affirmative evidence that there was not an intentional crime,” Bennett said.
Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett said according to NBC News.
“What they found was a sobbing, at turns described as frantic, hysterical, saying 'I'm sorry, I'm sorry, what have I done,' — words to that effect,” Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett told NBC News.
Bennett explained that criminal charges such as first- or second-degree murder, child endangerment, or involuntary manslaughter require a legal standard of conscious disregard of a substantial risk according to KMUW. Because the evidence pointed to a single act of inattentiveness after falling asleep, that standard was not met, making it a civil matter as reported by KMUW.
When asked if new evidence might emerge to alter the decision, Bennett said that he doubted it, noting that the investigation involved more than 100 interviews, security and cellphone video footage, and expert vehicle reenactments according to KMUW. Police and prosecutors contacted the victims’ families and those injured to inform them of the findings ahead of the public announcement as reported by NBC News.
“I also want to be honest with our community: There are some questions we may never be able to answer with complete certainty,” Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan said.
“every lead was examined, every piece of evidence was reviewed,” Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan said.