Samantha Kalkbrenner: Two Pennsylvania men charged for deadly crash that killed 15-year-old girl and left 4 injured
PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA: Two Pennsylvania men face charges in connection to a fatal accident that claimed the life of a 15-year-old girl and also left four injured.
William R Soliday, 43, and Andrew Voigt, 37, are facing numerous felony charges in connection with the September collision in Dravosburg between a school van and a Volkswagen which resulted in the death of Samantha Kalkbrenner, a cheerleader at Serra Catholic High School in Pennsylvania.
What charges do Andrew Voigt and William R Soliday face?
According to the Allegheny County Police, Soliday was charged with third-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter, homicide by a vehicle, and reckless driving. Voigt is facing one felony count of accidents involving death/personal injury along with multiple misdemeanors.
What did the District Attorney say?
At a press conference on Thursday, December 14, Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. alleged the two men were racing each other before the incident took place.
“At the point of impact between the vehicle and the van, the vehicle was 90 miles an hour at the point of impact, there are no skid marks,” Zappala Jr alleged. “These kids are going to school… Driving is a privilege. You do stuff like this. You are a murderer. This is just absolutely an irresponsible act,” he added.
Andrew Voigt reportedly did not stop at the crash site
Authorities alleged the two drivers were racing each other when Soliday, who was driving a white Volkswagen Jetta, crashed into the school van, which was traveling into the intersection to turn left onto Richland Avenue towards the Mansfield bridge.
“The Volkswagen struck the Ford school van on the driver’s side in the intersection of Richland Avenue and 3rd Street,” according to a criminal complaint. “There were no tire skid marks from either vehicle preceding the collision.”
Zappala Jr said there were five people in the Serra Catholic High School van, the driver and four high school kids, including Kalkbrenner, who died at the scene. “Three of the kids were ejected from the vehicle on impact,” he said. Voigt, according to authorities, allegedly didn’t stop at the crash site. Police said both Soliday and Voigt worked at a nearby business, around one quarter of a mile from the crash site.
"She was the beating heart of her class," school principal Robert Childs told local CBS affiliate KDKA about the sophomore after the deadly crash. "The way she treated everyone, the way she was kind to everyone," Childs added.
