Weigelt

An Albion woman has been charged with vehicular homicide for her involvement in a May accident that resulted in the death of a tractor operator on Highway 330.

On May 20, Marshall County deputies and EMS were dispatched to a serious crash in the 1800 mile of Highway 330 south of Albion after a southbound vehicle driven by 22-year-old Morgan Weigelt rear ended a tractor, also southbound, being operated by 86-year-old Clarence Borton. Borton’s tractor overturned in a ditch, and he was pronounced deceased at the scene.

At the time, Weigelt was transported to a local hospital by UnityPoint EMS services with non-life threatening injuries. The Iowa State Patrol has since conducted a technical crash investigation and charged Weigelt with vehicular homicide, a class C felony, failure to stop in an assured and clear distance, a simple misdemeanor, use of an electronic communication — over the age of 18, a simple misdemeanor and failure to provide proof of financial liability (accident related), a simple misdemeanor.

Weigelt is being held in the Marshall County Jail on a $10,900 bond, and she was scheduled to make an initial appearance on Wednesday morning unless she made bail, which would result in a different date being set. Trial information is not yet available.

Court records indicate that Borton’s estate, through attorney Barry Kaplan of Kaplan and Frese LLP, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Weigel back in August and is seeking a judgment for monetary damages “in a reasonable amount against the Defendant, plus interest and court costs.” That trial is tentatively set to begin next October.