**Disclaimers: *Please note, this may be a difficult or disturbing read due to the content. Reader discretion is advised. *All those charged (or not charged) are considered innocent until proven guilty by their own admission in a court of law or a jury/judge.
Today's true crime case is from 2018 but just resulted in sentencing within the last month.
Case Info:
Debra Slaymaker-Walker is a 64-year-old woman who was recently sentenced by the Lancaster County Court of Common Pleas.
October 2018
On October 26, 2018, Ms. Slaymaker-Walker was driving her vehicle, a 2016 Kia Sportage, after leaving her morning shift at McDonald's, approximately two miles outside of the a northern borough in Lancaster County, when police attempted to respond for "reckless driving". Police terminated the pursuit for safety reasons. Prior to her entering the borough, Ms. Slaymaker-Walker struck a school bus, and did not stop. She then entered the borough and was going 73-77 mph in an area where the speed limit is 25 mph. At that point, she attempted to go around a stopped line of traffic. Schools were just letting out for the day. In the process of going around, she struck three vehicles, as well as a Chevy Sonic, which resulted in her vehicle going "airborne" and flipping onto its roof. The Chevy Sonic was pushed into oncoming traffic where it was struck by an oncoming SUV. Riding in the Chevy Sonic were three Warwick Township High School students, Meghan Keeney, Jack Nicholson, and Ryan Beebe. Both Meghan and Jack were killed in the crash, and Ryan was seriously injured. Ms. Slaymaker-Walker was also seriously injured in the crash.
Ms. Slaymaker-Walker reported to police not having any recollection of the events that day, and indicated that she has a seizure disorder, which medical records corroborated. She was not under any PennDot restrictions. Her attorneys, based on her medical records, argued that she did not have awareness or control of her actions during the time in question.
Ms. Slaymaker-Walker was charged with two counts of criminal homicide, two counts of homicide by vehicle, two counts of involuntary manslaughter, one count of aggravated assault, one count of aggravated assault by vehicle, one count of simple assault, and several other driving-related charges. She was held on $1,000,000 bail, but allowed to be on house arrest due to her injuries.
August 2019
In August of 2019, prosecutors argued for a change to her bail after reports that she sent a friend request to one of the victim's family member. Prosecutors characterized her action as causing "extreme emotional distress" to that family. Her bail remained unsecured $1,000,000, but was modified to state that she have no contact with the family.
February 2020
In February of 2020, her attorneys made attempts to have the charges dismissed because of her medical condition. That request was denied by the Judge. She was to stand trial in May of 2020.
July 2020
Ms. Slaymaker-Walker was sentenced during a two-hour hearing before Judge Totaro. She entered a plea agreement, pleading no contest, to two counts of involuntary manslaughter, and one count of recklessly endangering another person. She was sentenced to ten years of probation, to have her license suspended for those ten years, pay restitution to the victims' families in the amount of $31,748, follow all psychiatric treatment and take medications, no contact with the victims or their families, including by social media, and may become "unsupervised probation/parole" after 6 months. In a news interview, the victims' families said that they do not support the plea agreement. "Nicholson's mother said she forgives Slaymaker-Walker but is disappointed the case will not go to trial." Jack's mother, said this about forgiveness,"Forgiveness oftentimes is misunderstood. It doesn't mean that what she did was OK. It doesn't mean that we forfeit our legal rights. It doesn't mean that we stop seeking justice. That's not what forgiveness means. Forgiveness is really more for our sake," said Donna Nicholson Stief."
Case Analysis:
Ms. Slaymaker-Walker plead no contest or "nolo contendere". Essentially, this type of plea says that the person is not admitting guilt but conceding that if it would have gone to trial, they likely would have been found guilty. For sentencing, it is ultimately treated as though it were a finding of guilt.
The condition that her probation/parole may become unsupervised after 6 months means that she would not have to report to a probation officer, but pay her costs, fines, and restitution.
If Ms. Slaymaker-Walker was previously diagnosed with a seizure disorder, it is unclear why her license was not under any type of modified status. In Pennsylvania, "According to Section 1518 of the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code all health care personnel, i.e. all physicians, podiatrists, chiropractors, physician assistants, certified registered nurse practitioners and other persons authorized to diagnose or treat disorders and disabilities defined by PennDOT’s Medical Advisory Board, must report to PennDOT within 10 days, in writing, the full name, address, and date of birth of any patient 15 years of age or older, who has been diagnosed as having a condition that could impair their ability to safely operate a motor vehicle." Those conditions include "seizure disorder" and "Periodic episodes of loss of consciousness and/or awareness". If a healthcare professional does not report these conditions, it is possible that they "could be held responsible as a proximate cause of a crash resulting in death, injury or property loss caused by" the patient.
As a part of her sentence, she must comply with psychiatric treatment and medications. At this point, she is clearly going to be under some sort of medical care, and therefore if she truly does have a seizure disorder, it would need to be reported to PennDOT.
### I did not psychologically evaluate Ms. Slaymaker-Walker###
However, psychologically, one must attempt to understand her ability to take responsibility for her crimes and behaviors, and the consequences of both. Ms. Slaymaker-Walker likely did not understand or become aware of her actions during or immediately following the seizure, based on medical professional reports described in the articles. However, she had the psychological capacity to prepare for and attend work that morning. It is unclear if she knew of her seizure disorder prior to this incident, but if she had, although her actions in the moment could be difficult to attribute to "malice" or evil intent of causing harm, it seems fair to describe the actions as "reckless". In forensic psychology, evaluators will talk about "criminal responsibility". Did the individual know what they were doing was wrong and were their behaviors enmeshed with a medical or psychological condition/state that explains their actions? This case is difficult because she may not be criminally responsible in the moment of the crimes, but what about prior to?
It is not clear what Ms. Slaymaker-Walker was attempting to accomplish by sending a friend request to a victim's family. Legally, this is often ill-advised. Psychologically, it could be interpreted as her guilt manifesting to make amends.
Victims and their families
The victims and their families in this case will not get "closure" as some articles allude to. Many victims do not see restitution or the sentencing as the closing of a case, as nothing can fully restore their life to a point prior to the incident. The victims and their families could seek to file civil claims against Ms. Slaymaker-Walker. However, other than monetary compensation, this may just create more stress and trauma for the victims and families. I do hope that the victims were able to provide a victim impact statement at sentencing if they so chose to do so, even if the sentence was prearranged. I also hope that the victims and their families receive any counseling, should they wish to, that could be provided at no cost to them through state or non-profit victim assistance centers or through the Victim Compensation Assistance Program.
This case may leave you with unresolved feelings, comments, or questions. Please feel free to comment them or contact me directly. Thank you for reading.
Sources: [ABC27 News "Judge refuses to dismiss charges in crash deaths of 2 Warwick students" Myles Snyder 2/26/2020; PennLive "Attorneys for woman accused in 2018 crash that killed Warwick students have asked for dismissal of the case: reports" Becky Metrick 1/28/2020; ABC27 News "Lawyers: Woman suffered seizure before crash deaths of 2 Warwick students" Myles Snyder 1/28/2020; Lancaster Online "Driver charged in fatal Warwick crash sent Facebook friend request to victim's family member: court records" Lindsey Blest 8/14/2019; WGAL News8 "Woman pleads no contest to charges in 2018 crash that killed two Warwick High School students, injured another" Anne Shannon 7/15/2020; UJS Portal PA Docket Sheets Debra Slaymaker-Walker CP-36-CR-0000611-2019; Lancaster Crimewatch PA "WOMAN PLEADS NO CONTEST, IS SENTENCED FOR MULTI-VEHICLE CRASH IN LITITZ THAT KILLED 2 STUDENTS" Brett A. Hambright 7/14/2020; PA Dept. of Motor Vehicles website Medical Reporting FAQ and Medically Impaired Driver Law]
Photo credits: Wix photos