Teen sentenced for wreck that killed Shawnee Mission East sophomore

A teenage driver who lost control of his car and crashed into a tree, killing one of his friends, has been sentenced to serve one year and one month in juvenile detention.

Drew Welch, 16, was sentenced in the juvenile division of Johnson County District Court where he pleaded no contest last month to charges of involuntary manslaughter and aggravated battery.

Alex Carney, 15, a sophomore at Shawnee Mission East High School, was killed in the Feb. 7, 2018, crash in Prairie Village.

Another teen was seriously injured in the crash in the 7100 block of Cherokee Drive.

According to court documents, the three classmates at Shawnee Mission East were in a car that was rear-ended by another vehicle.

Welch “panicked” and drove off. The driver of the other vehicle pursued them.

“This caused Drew to further panic as he tried to get away from the vehicle that was chasing them,” defense attorney John Duma wrote in a sentencing memorandum.

According to the memorandum, the car was traveling at more than 80 mph, but slowed to 60 mph when it hydroplaned on the icy road and struck a tree.

Carney was killed and the other teen was seriously injured.

There was no indication that drugs or alcohol played a factor in the crash.

This story was originally published August 6, 2018 at 12:25 PM.