A 34-year-old Kansas mother was released without charges after her pickup drove onto a Wichita youth soccer field and killed a 6-year-old boy and a 35-year-old man, leaving families still waiting for answers.
The Chevrolet pickup left a parking space about 3:25 p.m. Saturday and drove onto a field at Stryker Sports Complex in northeast Wichita during a youth soccer game. Two people died on the field despite lifesaving efforts. Ten others were hurt.
Fox News reported that Wichita police on Sunday identified the dead as Cole Adrian, 6, and Nicholas Schafer, 35, both of McPherson, Kansas. Police said the pair were not related. The 34-year-old woman driving the truck was taken into custody, then released without charges while toxicology results and a mechanical exam of the vehicle remain pending.
Five of the injured were children: a 5-year-old girl, a 5-year-old boy, two 8-year-old boys, and a 9-year-old girl. Five injured adults ranged from 28 to 68. Police described the 10 traumatic injuries as noncritical. A 61-year-old woman was also hospitalized for medical complications unrelated to the crash, bringing total transports to 11. Hospitals receiving patients included Ascension Via Christi and Wesley Medical Center.
Sudden vehicle strikes into crowds have left other families searching for accountability in recent cases, including the fatal Glendale car strike that claimed a composer’s life.
The unnamed driver held a valid license and had no outstanding arrest warrants. Capt. Aaron Moses told a Saturday news conference she was cooperating. Two of her children were inside the pickup. Another of her children was playing soccer on a different field at the same complex.
Breitbart noted the 34-year-old woman is from Garden City and that investigators were awaiting toxicology test results along with a mechanical examination of the vehicle. Police have not determined whether the crash stemmed from a medical emergency, impairment, a mechanical failure, or another cause.
More than 30 witnesses were interviewed, including the children who had been inside the truck. On an adjacent field, the Kansas State High School Activities Association’s inaugural girls flag football state championship was halted. Officials suspended play and said games would not resume that weekend.
Crowded public venues have faced other sudden threats in recent months, from vehicle incidents to foiled plots such as the Mall of America shooting scheme broken up by the FBI.
Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan spoke plainly about the gap that remains.
"What should have been a day of children playing soccer and families spending time together ended in tragedy."
Sullivan also said Saturday that investigators knew what happened but not why.
"We know what happened, but now we’re working very hard to find out why it happened."
He added that the department was thinking of the injured, their families, and everyone who witnessed the scene, and that those families were not alone.
The New York Post reported that bystanders pulled the driver from the truck as she shouted, “Oh my God, Oh my God, what have I done?!” The same account carried the department’s Sunday statement that no charges had been filed and that investigators were still working to determine the circumstances of the crash.
Police consulted the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office before releasing the driver. Officers expected to make an initial case presentation to District Attorney Marc Bennett early this week. The DA’s office said it would share information as appropriate after that review.
Truck-related deaths have also driven hard questions about enforcement and accountability in other high-profile cases, including one in which a Democratic mother challenged her party after an illegal immigrant truck driver killed her newlywed daughter.
Sporting Wichita Academy posted a Facebook message that framed the loss in community terms.
"Soccer is more than a game. It is a community. It is families in the stands, teammates standing beside one another, and people who come together through a shared love of the game."
The club added that the community was hurting and needed to lean on one another. It thanked first responders, medical workers, and bystanders.
Meddys, with locations in Wichita and Salina, pledged 20 percent of revenue from Oct. 18 through Oct. 24 to the affected families. The restaurant also offered free meals to immediate families of the injured while they remained hospitalized and partnered with local nonprofit Kingdom Athletics Mission to handle GoFundMe donations and business contributions for the McPherson families.
"Wichita is our home. These are our neighbors. In moments like this, we take care of one another."
Police asked the public for tips and listed Crime Stoppers and a tip line for anyone with information. As of the Sunday update, the cause remained undetermined and the driver remained free of charges.
Two people are dead after a truck left a parking lot and entered a field full of kids and parents. Until toxicology, the mechanical exam, and the DA’s review produce clear answers, that gap is the story families in McPherson and Wichita still have to live with.