Driver in crash that killed Tucson police officer charged with misdemeanor, traffic violations
Prosecutors filed charges against the driver accused of causing a crash that killed Tucson police officer Adam Buckner on March 31, police officials announced Wednesday.
The Tucson City Court Prosecutors Office charged 20-year-old Nicholas William Skitzi with one misdemeanor of death by a moving violation, and two civil traffic infractions for failure to yield while turning left at an intersection and failure to yield to an authorized emergency vehicle.
Skitzi was cited and released, Tucson police stated in a news release.
On March 31, Buckner, 31 and lead police officer for his midtown Tucson police district, was responding to a call in a 2007 Ford Crown Victoria patrol car, with its lights and siren on, when a crash occurred at around 10 p.m. at Campbell Avenue and Sixth Street just east of downtown Tucson.
Buckner was traveling northbound through a green light at Sixth Avenue when he was hit by a turning vehicle that failed to yield to the patrol car.
Chief Kasmar said the other driver had minor injuries and was cooperating with the investigation.
Kasmar said there did not appear to be any signs of impairment. No citations or arrests were made at the scene as Tucson police continued an investigation.
Witnesses near the crash gave CPR and first aid to Buckner before emergency responders arrived, actions that the chief commended.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Charges issued for driver involved with police officer killed in crash
