Driver in fatal Uber crash turns himself in
A 23-year-old man turned himself in Monday after fleeing the scene of the fatal Uber crash that killed three women in Milwaukee early Sunday, according to Milwaukee police.
The three women who were killed while riding in the Uber car were identified by the Milwaukee County medical examiner’s office Monday as Amy C. Taylor, 32; Ashley L. Sawatzke, 30; and Lindsey B. Cohen, 35, all of Chicago.
Sawatzke grew up in Menomonee Falls and graduated from Divine Savior Holy Angels High School. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a bachelor's degree in journalism-strategic communication and a certificate in business in 2009.
"Ashley was a bright and engaged young woman who always brought an upbeat energy to my class," Katy Culver, assistant professor in the School of Journalism & Mass Communication and director of the Center for Journalism Ethics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison remembered.
"I really have no words for what this loss must mean to everyone in her life," Culver added. "What a shocking and devastating moment."
The women all worked in advertising in Chicago. Taylor and Cohen worked at Energy BBDO and Sawatzke worked at Leo Burnett.
News of Sawatzke's death was still reaching the DSHA school community and members of the Class of 2005 Monday afternoon.
"Obviously, we are devastated," said Stephanie Chadek, DSHA's marketing and graphic design associate.
According to the medical examiner's report, Sawatzke, Taylor and Cohen were riding in an Uber car back to the Third Ward's Kimpton Journeyman Hotel, where they planned to stay for the night.
At around 3 a.m., a 2015 Lexus R350 ran a red light on southbound N. 2nd St and W. Clybourn St. and struck the Uber vehicle. The two men in the Lexus fled on foot.
According to social media posts, the 41-year-old Uber driver is Tim Snyder, and he's being treated at a hospital. The posts say Snyder is undergoing treatment for cracked ribs and vertebrae, and damage to his aorta, which caused internal bleeding.
A friend of Snyder and his wife started a Go Fund Me page to raise money for his "immediate lost income, medical bills and other expenses incurred due to this accident."
As of late Monday afternoon, more than $2,500 had been raised for his medical expenses. Friends, fellow Uber drivers and others left messages of encouragement on the Go Fund Me site.
According to Uber's website, if an accident occurs while the Uber driver is carrying a passenger, the passenger and driver are covered under Uber’s $1 million liability coverage policy. Uber also provides $1 million of insurance coverage for accidents with uninsured or underinsured drivers.
This is the second fatal crash this year where Uber passengers were killed in the Milwaukee-area. The first fatal crash occurred in West Allis in April, when an off-duty Milwaukee firefighter struck a minivan operating as an Uber vehicle. The driver and passenger of the Uber were killed.
Jesse Garza of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this report.