BENTON – Responsibility for the death of Katie Bunt rests with Caleb Lenhardt who hit her with his car and not with Alton policeman William Reed, U.S. District Judge Staci Yandle ruled on June 12.
She granted summary judgment to Alton on claims that Bunt’s estate brought against the city, police chief Jake Simmons, and Reed.
Lenhardt drove into a crowd in downtown Alton on July 22, 2018, killing Bunt.
Estate administrator Andria Heinemeier filed suit in Madison County circuit court, claiming Reed should have arrested Lenhardt earlier that night.
She claimed he lacked training.
Alton removed the suit to U.S. district court as a claim under federal law.
According to the complaint, trouble started between Lenhardt and Kelsey Barnes, who had an order of protection on him.
Barnes had seen him at two bars that night, and her group argued with his group as one group left the second bar and the other group arrived.
Barnes complained to police that Lenhardt violated the order of protection.
Officer Reed responded and Lenhardt told him he left the first bar to avoid problems.
Lenhardt admitted his group and her group argued at the second bar.
“Based on his investigation, officer Reed determined that he did not have probable cause to arrest Lenhardt,” Yandle wrote.
She wrote that he believed Lenhardt’s contacts with Barnes were inadvertent.
At an unspecified time, Katie Bunt joined Barnes. An altercation occurred between Lenhardt and Barnes, and Lenhardt drove into a crowd.
Yandle wrote that no reasonable jury could find Reed committed affirmative acts that created or increased a danger to Bunt.
“Officer Reed left Lenhardt and Barnes precisely as he found them,” she wrote.
Yandle found no evidence that Simmons failed to train officers in situations involving protective orders and domestic violence.
John Daughterty and Keith Short of Alton represented Heinemeier.
Charles Pierce of Belleville represented Alton.
In criminal court, Lenhardt faced charges of murder and reckless homicide.
A jury split on the charges in January, and he agreed to plead guilty of aggravated battery and aggravated driving under the influence.
He accepted a sentence of 10 years.