Kansas City man charged with manslaughter in West Bottoms crash that killed motorcyclist
A Kansas City man suspected by authorities of driving impaired faces two felonies stemming from a head-on crash that left a motorcyclist dead Friday night.
Jackson County prosecutors charged Samuel L. Weakly, 21, with second-degree involuntary manslaughter and fleeing the scene of a crash. He was being held in the county jail on Tuesday on a $25,000 bond.
Kansas City police officers responded to the crash around 9:30 p.m. Friday on the Forrester Road near the overpass at Sante Fe Street. A motorcyclist, Matthew Rogers, 37, was taken to the hospital and pronounced dead after he arrived there.
According to court documents, police investigators determined a silver Ford sedan was the other vehicle involved and that its driver fled the scene. On Friday night, the car’s owner told detectives Weakly had borrowed the vehicle and then had gotten in a crash.
Police officers located Weakly at 17th Street and Belleview Avenue on Friday night. He was sitting on a curb and smelled strongly of alcohol and marijuana, according to court documents.
He allegedly admitted to drinking two shots of liquor and smoking marijuana before the crash. Charging documents state Weakly consented to having his blood drawn for analysis.
During a police interview, Weakly told a Kansas City detective the crash happened as he was adjusting the car radio. He said he kept driving until the car became disabled roughly 150 yards away.
Afterward, Weakly told police he “began to panic” and called his friend to give him a ride. He also told the detective he did not return to the area to check on the motorcycle driver, according to court documents.
Online court records did not list a defense attorney for Weakly as of Tuesday.
If convicted under Missouri law, Weakly faces up to four years in prison for involuntary manslaughter and seven years for leaving the scene of an accident.
