Driver in crash that killed actor Treat Williams pleads guilty to reduced charge

The Vermont man facing a felony charge in connection with the crash that killed “Everwood” actor Treat Williams last year pleaded guilty Friday to a reduced charge of negligent driving resulting in death.

Ryan Koss, 35, was driving a Honda Element that collided with Williams, who was riding his motorcycle in Dorset on June 12.

Williams, 71, was “unable to avoid a collision and was thrown from his motorcycle,” according to Vermont State Police. He suffered critical injuries in the crash and was later pronounced dead at the Albany Medical Center in New York.

After an investigation concluded the Honda Element pulled in front of Williams’ motorcycle, Koss was hit with a felony charge of gross negligent operation resulting in death.

Koss, an actor and theater director who knew Williams for years and said he considered him a friend, initially argued he was “confident the facts [would] show I obeyed all relevant traffic laws.”

In September he pleaded not guilty to the felony charge. If convicted, he could have faced up to 15 years in prison.

But on Friday, Koss pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of negligent driving resulting in death and was handed a one-year deferred sentence. His driver’s license will be revoked as part of his probation, and he’ll need to complete a community restorative justice program.

“I’m here to apologize and take responsibility for this tragic accident,” Koss told the court Friday during an emotional hearing.

Williams’ 32-year-old son, Gill, wearing his father’s jacket, spoke to Koss directly, saying he had forgiven him and hoped Koss could forgive himself.

But he added, “I really wish you hadn’t killed my father. I really had to say that.”

Williams’ daughter, who didn’t attend the hearing, said in a statement read in court that she’s still too angry to forgive Koss, but hopes one day she’ll be able to do so.

“I will never get to feel my father’s hug again, be able to get his advice again, introduce him to my future husband, have him walk me down the aisle, introduce him to my babies, and have him cry when I name my first son after him,” her statement read.

With News Wire Services