Investigators found fibers in a truck’s broken headlight that appear consistent with the shirt a Lawrence runner was wearing when she was struck and killed by a driver who fled the scene last month, according to law enforcement documents.
Elsa McGrain, a 20-year-old premedicine student at KU, was struck by a vehicle the evening of Thursday, Nov. 6 north of Lawrence. She was found around 3:35 a.m. Friday, Nov. 7, dead from multiple blunt force trauma, according to the documents.
William R. Klingler, 36, was charged last month with one count of leaving the scene of a fatality accident, a level-4, or midlevel severity, felony.
He also faces a charge of circumvention of an ignition interlock device, which is a device that requires people convicted of DUIs to take a breath test before their vehicle will start; driving while suspended, second or subsequent offense; and no proof of motor vehicle liability insurance coverage.
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Probable cause affidavits are documents written by law enforcement officers to support charges in a case. The allegations they contain have not been proved in court.
Master Deputy Troy Squire of the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office wrote the affidavit in this case.
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Deputies collected video footage from a nearby business. The video reportedly showed McGrain running southbound in the 1700 block of East 1500 Road, in an area of the road between U.S. 24-40 Highway (North 1800 Road) and Interstate 70.
A northbound vehicle was “traveling at a high rate of speed” in the area at the same time, according to the affidavit.
“The runner and the vehicle are lost on the video behind an obstruction around 6:07 P.M. … The truck emerges at a high rate of speed north of this obstruction. The runner does not emerge from behind this obstruction,” and that was the area where her body was found on the east side of the road, the affidavit alleges.
Some broken pieces of plastic at the scene contained partial identifying numbers and letters that led detectives to determine the parts were likely from a mid-2000s Ford F-150, according to the affidavit.
Detective Kimberly Nicholson of the Lawrence Police Department found video of a 2008 white Ford F-150 heading toward the location of the crash about 12 minutes before deputies believe the crash occurred. The truck had no significant damage to its front, and license plate readers identified the truck as registered to Klingler, according to the affidavit.
Roy Larson, a Lawrence police officer who was off duty and driving a personal vehicle, followed Klingler on Sunday, Nov. 9. Douglas County Deputy Colton Bonner stopped the vehicle near North 950 and East 550 roads, and Captain Dan O’Hare assisted with the traffic stop, according to the affidavit.
They took Klingler into custody on a warrant for failure to appear in court. A large portion of the affidavit that appears to include Klingler’s statements to law enforcement is redacted. However, the affidavit later notes that Klingler made statements about his DoorDash route, and the statements as well as city traffic cameras place Klingler in the area of the crash.
“The 2008 Ford F-150 Mr. Klingler was stopped driving had extensive damage to the front windshield and passenger front headlight area,” according to the affidavit.
Karine Quadros, an evidence technician with the sheriff’s office, processed the F-150.
“During the processing of the vehicle, green fibers were located in the area of the damaged passenger side headlight assembly,” according to the affidavit. “The color of the fibers are consistent with the color of the green shirt Ms. McGrain was wearing at the time of the accident.”
“Found on the front driver’s seat of the F-150, was a left-side ear cushion to a pair of headphones. Collected at the scene of the accident was a right-side ear cushion,” the affidavit continues. “These cushions are marked with an L and R and are similar in color. Found behind the driver’s seat of the F- 150 was a white O shaped silicone object. Ms. Quadros collected a similar white O shaped silicone object from the scene of the accident.”
There are heavy redactions on another portion of the affidavit, but the remaining text implies that Klingler asked someone to look at damage on his vehicle and that person told law enforcement he had “questioned the deer accident because he saw no deer hair on the vehicle,” according to an unredacted line.
If convicted, Klingler could face between 38 and 172 months in prison — a little more than three years up to more than 14 years.
Court records indicate Klingler was charged in July 2024 with driving under the influence in what would be his fourth or subsequent conviction if found guilty. The charging document lists two cases in 2019, one in 2018 and one in 2012.
He faces a few other charges in the same 2024 case, including circumventing an ignition interlock device. That case is also pending.
A judge set Klingler’s bond at $500,000 cash or surety, meaning he’d likely need to pay a bondsman $50,000 to be released from the Douglas County jail pending trial.
Klingler’s next court date is a status conference set for Jan. 6 in the courtroom of Douglas County District Judge Stacey Donovan.
Defendants in criminal cases should be presumed not guilty unless they are convicted.
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Court document details evidence allegedly found in fatal hit-and-run north of Lawrence
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Mackenzie Clark (she/her), reporter/founder of The Lawrence Times, can be reached at mclark@lawrencekstimes.com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.
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