One dead, two injured in crash on Highway 20
By Tracy Ouellette
Editor
A 43-year-old Waterford man was killed Saturday afternoon when his motorcycle was struck head on by an SUV at the intersection of Highway 20 and Division Street in East Troy.
Andrew Pearson died at the scene according to Village of East Troy Police Chief Alan Boyes.
Pearson’s wife Antrea Pearson, 48, was on the motorcycle with him and was injured. She was transported Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee by East Troy Emergency Services and underwent surgery on Saturday, according to Boyes.
A second man, Jeffrey Marker, 55, of Mukwonago, who was on his own motorcycle was also hit and transported to Waukesha Memorial Hospital with injuries.
Boyes said the preliminary investigation indicates a sport-utility vehicle driven by Andre Carroll, 19, of Milwaukee, crossed the double-yellow centerline striking the motorcycles head on.
Boyes said that while he had heard rumors that Carroll was passing a car stopped at the intersection to allow pedestrians to cross the highway at the time of the crash, the investigation had only indicated the SUV crossed the centerline into oncoming traffic. Boyes said it’s possible Carroll “was trying to pass or he could have just fallen asleep and just crossed over.” He said there was no evidence at this time that there were pedestrians crossing the street at the time of the crash.
Boyes said the Police Department is waiting on the report from the Walworth County Crash Investigation Unit and they are still investigating the crash. Boyes said more charges could be filed against Carroll, depending on the results of the pending toxicology tests.
Carroll was arrested and confined to Walworth County Jail Saturday. A $150,000 cash bond was set Monday and Carroll was charged in Walworth County Circuit Court Tuesday morning with second-degree reckless homicide, knowingly operating without a valid license – causing death, and two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety.
Carroll faces up to 71 years in jail and $160,000 in fines if convicted of the felony charges.
He was scheduled to make an initial appearance in Walworth County Court on Tuesday afternoon. Judge David Reddy will be presiding over the court hearings.
The Wisconsin State Patrol and Town of East Troy Police units assisted the Village of East Troy at the accident scene.
A bad intersection
The intersection of Highway 20 and Division Street has been a concern of residents and village officials for a while.
“We’ve lived on that road for the last 25 years and the traffic has increased immensely because of all the new subdivisions,” Kay Kittelson said Monday. “It’s the main road into town and it’s highly congested.”
Kittleson said getting on to the highway from the side roads can be difficult in high-traffic times such as rush hour or when school lets out.
Village of East Troy Board President Randy Timms said the village would be contacting the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to see what could be done about the intersection.
“It’s a state-owned highway, so it’s up to them as to what can be done,” Timms said. “Whether it’s stop signs or lights, they’re going to have to make the call.”
Boyes said, if nothing else, he’d like to see a lighted crosswalk for pedestrians to be able to get across the highway safely.
“It would be nice if people could at least hit a button and cross with traffic stopped,” Boyes said.
