Driver Charged With Careless Driving For Carleton Car Crash

The driver of the SUV that crashed last year carrying Carleton ultimate players has been charged with a misdemeanor.

William Sparks, the driver of the SUV that crashed and took three Carleton CUT players’ lives last winter, was charged with a misdemeanor this week for careless driving.

“In completing the crash reconstruction, the Minnesota State Patrol found that Defendant’s failure to reduce his speed for conditions likely contributed to the crash,” according to court documents. “And that Defendant’s failure to maintain control and cross the centerline into oncoming traffic was the contributing factor in the crash.”

The highway was snowpacked and icy as Sparks drove to the airport to drop off the players for a trip to the Stanford Invite in February 2014. Highway patrol determined that Sparks should have reduced his speed, which in part caused him to lose control and collide with an oncoming semi.

Sparks, still a student at Carleton, faces up to $1000 in fines and 90 days in jail if convicted.