The Aug. 8, 2022, incident left the now 14-year-old son of Megan Arneson orphaned
NEED TO KNOW
- A boy’s mother died in a 2022 crash caused by an improperly loaded excavator striking a bridge
- The driver responsible pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide and was sentenced to community corrections and service
- The boy, now raised by his grandparents, was awarded $65 million in a wrongful death jury verdict
Three years after a teen boy and his mom were in a crash that killed her, the now 14-year-old has been awarded $65 million.
Megan Arneson’s son was awarded the wrongful death jury verdict after she was killed in a crash on Aug. 8, 2022, a press release from Dulin McQuinn Young, LLP explains.
That day, Arneson and her then 10-year-old son were traveling northbound on I-25 near Mead, Colo., as they made their way home from Water World.
Arneson, a single mother and preschool teacher, had taken the day off to surprise her son with a trip to the water park.
Credit: kibbey fishburn funeral home
While the mother and son were on the road, driver-employee Darnell Yingling, who worked for Import Auto Inc. at the time, was transporting a large excavator.
Before driving, Yingling failed to properly load the excavator on the trailer, per the press release.
“As Yingling attempted to pass under the overpass for Weld County Road 34, the extended arm of the excavator struck the bridge, causing a cloud of dust and concrete debris to fall onto the northbound lanes of I-25,” the press release said. “A large piece of concrete impaled the windshield of the Arneson vehicle striking Megan Arneson on the head, causing the Arneson vehicle to careen off the roadway.”
Arneson died at the scene while her son attempted to call for help.
The press release said Colorado State Patrol investigated the incident and determined the excavator was improperly loaded on the trailer, causing the arm to exceed the bridge’s maximum clearance height.
In 2023, Yingling was charged with vehicular homicide, according to the Loveland Reporter-Herald, citing court records. That November, he pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide-reckless driving and was sentenced in January 2024 to four years in community corrections and 300 hours of community service, the outlet reported.
Arneson’s son was left orphaned and is now being raised by his grandparents after sustaining minor injuries in the crash, according to the Loveland Reporter-Herald.
Attorneys for Import Auto Inc. called the incident a tragic accident and noted that there have been no other incidents in the company’s more than 35 years of business.
PEOPLE has reached out to attorneys for Import Auto Inc. and Yingling for comment.
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