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AMERICAN FORK — A West Jordan man was booked into Utah County Jail on suspicion of manslaughter after authorities say he drove into another vehicle while fleeing from police Friday morning, killing one person.
Trevor Pitcher, 21, was arrested on suspicion of manslaughter, evading police and reckless endangerment Friday afternoon.
American Fork Police Sgt. Josh Christensen said Pitcher was driving a white GMC pickup truck that was pulled over by a Utah County sheriff's deputy near 500 E. State Street in American Fork about 9:30 a.m.
"As the deputy was approaching the vehicle, the driver fled westbound on Main Street in American Fork," Christensen said. "The deputy returned to his vehicle and began pursuing. They went on Main Street and ended up on the freeway in American Fork."
The truck then exited in Lehi and traveled back into American Fork on State Street. It eventually collided with a white passenger car occupied by an elderly couple at the intersection of 900 West and State Street, Christensen said.
Witnesses told KSL they saw the fleeing vehicle traveling slowly before it started driving faster. They estimate the driver was traveling about 70 mph when he ran past a red light and crashed into the white car.
The passenger inside the white car, whose name and exact age was not released, was pronounced dead at the scene. Pitcher and the woman driving the white car suffered minor injuries and were both transported to a hospital as a precaution, according to Christensen.
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Pitcher was later released from the hospital and booked into jail. Christensen said Pitcher had a "history of fleeing from officers." He added that investigators were looking into the possibility that the man was also impaired.
Court records show Pitcher pleaded guilty to assault in May in relation to a 2016 domestic case. He also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of failing to stop at an officer's command and reckless driving in 2016.
Utah Highway Patrol troopers were assisting American Fork police in investigating the crash, Christensen added.
Contributing: Sam Penrod, KSL TV; Paul Nelson, KSL Newsradio
