Prosecutors will not charge Caitlyn Jenner for fatal car crash
Prosecutors have declined to charge Caitlyn Jenner for her role in a fatal car crash in California, the Associated Press reports.
“We believed from the start that a thorough and objective investigation would clear Caitlyn of any criminal wrongdoing,” Jenner’s attorney Blair Burk said in a statement. “We are heartened the district attorney has agreed that even a misdemeanor charge would be inappropriate. A traffic accident, however devastating and heartbreaking when a life is lost, is not necessarily a criminal matter.“
The crash took place in early February as Jenner’s SUV crashed into two cars and pushed one car into oncoming traffic. Jenner was not speeding, but was driving at a speed that was considered “unsafe” for the day's conditions. Prosecutors determined that there was not enough evidence for a conviction on misdemeanor manslaughter charges.
The estate of Kim Howe, the victim of the crash, was being sued in August for $18.5 million by five occupants of the Hummer that killed the 69-year-old.
Another lawsuit against Jenner, 65, for negligence was expected to be filed. Jenner is already facing a lawsuit from Jessica Steindorff, the 29-year-old driver of the Prius also involved in the crash, for property damage and personal injury. Howe’s stepchildren have also filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the 1976 Olympic gold medalist.
Jenner won the decathlon at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. She was awarded the Arthur Ashe award for courage at the 2015 ESPY Awards after announcing her transition earlier this year.
Jenner's own documentary series, I Am Cait, aired on E! on July 26. The show has been renewed for a second season.
- Christopher Chavez
