Kansas mom who drove onto soccer field killing two people, including boy, 6, walks free

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A Kansas mother who was driving a pickup truck that plowed through a field where a youth soccer game was being played has been released without charges.

Two people were killed, and 10 others were injured when the 34-year-old woman from Garden City, who has not been identified, smashed into a crowd of people at the Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita on Saturday afternoon, Wichita Police Capt. Aaron Moses at a news conference.

Who are the victims?

“Officers and paramedics arrived [at the] scene on a field on the west end of the complex where they saw community members and citizens rendering medical aid to those who were injured,” Moses said.

“They also located a truck on the west side of the field,” he added. “The driver was still with the vehicle, along with two juveniles.”

Adrian Cole, 6, and Nicholas Schafer, 35, were the fatalities in the horrific incident. The victims were not related, police said.

The victims injured in the deadly rampage were between five and 68 years old, including five children under the age of nine.

A 61-year-old woman experiencing medical complications unrelated to traumatic injuries was also taken to the hospital.

Haunting sounds

Erica Case, a woman whose son was playing on an adjacent field, told NBC News she first heard an engine revving, followed by several “boom” sounds.

“I saw the truck hitting things. I saw debris flying in the air,” she recounted to the outlet. “I don’t know if it was a cone, a chair or a person, but you could see matter flying as the truck was barreling through the soccer field at a decent rate of speed.”

She added: “The moment that I recognized that that wasn’t gunshots, that that was bodies, I lost it… because it wasn’t just adults, it was also children.”

Witnesses performed “life-saving assistance” to the wounded until first responders arrived, according to Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan at a follow-up news conference.

It remains unclear what led the mom to smash onto the busy soccer field.

No charges filed

She was taken into custody but was released on Sunday pending the results of toxicology testing and a mechanical examination of the vehicle, the Wichita Police Department announced on Sunday.

“No charges have been filed at this time, and investigators continue working to determine the circumstances that led to the crash,” the police department said in a news release.

“Our hearts are with the families of Adrian and Nicholas as they face an unimaginable loss. What should have been a day of children playing soccer and families spending time together ended in tragedy,” Sullivan said in a statement on Sunday.

“We are also thinking about those who were injured, their loved ones and everyone who witnessed what happened,” Sullivan said. “We know this tragedy has affected many people throughout our community, and we want those families to know they are not alone.”

“Our officers and investigators will continue working to understand exactly what happened.”

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