A 25-year-old Cazenovia resident was killed this week in Pickstown, S.D., when she was struck by a minivan after completing her workday.
Maegan E. Spindler, of Cazenovia, along with Dr. Robert Allan Klumb, 46, of Pierre, S.D., both were killed Monday, July 8, after Ronald Ray Fischer, Jr., 28, of Lake Andes, S.D., failed to stop his Chrysler Town and Country minivan at a stop sign at the intersection of Highway 18 and Highway 46 near Pickstown, according to the South Dakota Highway Patrol. The van continued into a hotel parking lot, hitting the two pedestrians and two parked vehicles around 8:45 p.m. Monday.
Spindler and Klum were killed after completing completing a long day’s work for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Dr. Klum was the leader of a team of half a dozen biologists and technicians working on the recovery of the endangered sturgeon.
Fischer’s injuries are serious but not life threatening. He was treated at a hospital in Wagner then transferred to Sioux Falls, according to a report from the Sioux Falls, S.D., Argus Leader.
The Highway Patrol gave no information as to the cause of the crash, and it was not known whether Fischer will face criminal charges, stated the Argus Leader in its July 9 report.
Calls to the South Dakota Highway Patrol office in Sioux Falls by the Cazenovia Republican have not yet been returned.
An obituary for Spindler in the Pierre, S.D. Capital Journal stated, however, that the crash was the result of a drunk driver.
Spindler’s parents, Gregg and Susan Spindler, of Cazenovia, said they expect the driver of the vehicle to be charged with DWI and two counts of vehicular manslaughter in the next few days.
Spindler was a 2006 graduate of Cazenovia High School.
A service is scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday, July 14, in the Oran Community Church in Oran. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Center for Biological Diversity in Tucson, Ariz., or Mothers Against Drunk Driving. Local arrangements are under the direction of Crosby-Jaeger Funeral Home in Wagner, S.D.
Jason Emerson is editor of the Cazenovia Republican. He can be reached at [email protected].
