Frederick Schimp: Pennsylvania State Trooper Runs Stop Sign, Kills Woman

A Pennsylvania State Trooper ran a stop sign early Saturday morning and plowed into a woman, killing her.

Police said Trooper Frederick Schimp was driving a 2013 Ford Explorer on Sterrettania Road at close to 3:30 am when he failed to stop at the intersection with state Route 98. He allegedly struck a 2012 Suzuki Kizashi driven by 57-year-old Donna Platz.

The woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

Erie County Coroner Lyell Cook said an autopsy would be conducted over the weekend on the woman killed by the State Trooper.

“That’s protocol any time police or firefighters or public servants are involved in a death,” Cook said.

Schimp and a fellow State Trooper, Garrett Padasak, had to be cut from their vehicle and were taken to UPMC Hamot. They reportedly suffered moderate injuries, but no more information was available about their condition. Police noted that Schimp and Padasak were not responding to a call at the time of the crash.

This is not the first time careless driving by a police officer has made headlines. Last year, on Thanksgiving morning, a police cruiser ran over Ohio Wesleyan University basketball player Caroline Welker.

The officer behind the wheel, Mark Jackson, was charged with failure to yield and paid a $135 fine. He was reportedly on the way to a call and was only going 15 miles per hour when he hit Welker. The same officer was apparently also involved in another on-duty driving incident two days before.

Wekler said she was shaken up by the incident, telling NBC News: “I have a concussion, and I’m really sore. But thankfully no broken bones.” She is recovering at home after receiving treatment at a local hospital.

Officials in Pennsylvania have not said if State Trooper Frederick Schimp will face charges for running the stop sign and killing the woman. State police were reportedly sending accident reconstruction specialists to the scene to investigate just how the accident took place.