Driver in Fatal Crash Charged for Running Red Light

The driver of a semi-tractor trailer involved in a September crash that killed four West Des Moines women on a birthday outing has been charged with failure to obey a traffic control device, according to a news release from the West Des Moines Police Department.

If convicted, Kenneth Eugene Snow Jr., 43, of Lockridge, Iowa, faces a fine of $1,000 and suspension of his driver license for up to 180 days.

Snow was southbound on Jordan Creek Parkway about 2:30 p.m. on Sept. 20 when he allegedly failed to stop at a stoplight and struck a vehicle driven by Arlene Laughlin, 86, as she left Des Moines Golf and Country Club, where she and three friends had celebrated a birthday.

Laughlin and a passenger, Frances Sechler, 85, died at the scene. Two other passengers, Marilyn Harper, 83, and Margaret Bannister, 95, were taken to area hospitals, where they later died of their injuries. All four were from West Des Moines.