BENNINGTON, Vt. — A Vermont man pleaded guilty Friday to a reduced charge of negligent driving causing death resulting in the June crash that killed actor Treat Williams.
Ryan Koss, 35, who knew Williams, received a one-year deferred sentence and as part of his probation, his driver’s license will be revoked for one year and he must complete a community restorative justice program.
Koss was turning left into a parking lot in a Honda SUV on June 12 when he collided with Williams’ oncoming motorcycle in Dorset, police said. Williams, 71, of Manchester Center, who was wearing a helmet, suffered serious injuries and was flown to Albany Medical Center in Albany, New York, where he was pronounced dead, police said.
After the crash, Koss called Williams’ wife to tell her what happened, said Bennington County State’s Attorney Erica Marthage, who said Koss took responsibility for the accident from the start.
During Friday’s emotional hearing, Koss apologized and offered his condolences to Williams’ family and fans. The managing creative director of the Dorset Theater Festival in Vermont had known Williams for years as a member of the close-knit community, as well as a fellow theater member, and considered him a friend.
“I am here to apologize and take responsibility for this tragic accident,” he told the court.
Williams’ son Gill, 32, wore his father’s jacket and spoke directly to Koss, whom he had met before the crash. The family did not want to press charges or send Koss to jail, he said.
“I forgive you, and I hope you forgive yourself,” he said. But he also added, “I really wish you hadn’t killed my father.” I really had to say that.”
Gill Williams said his father was “everything” to their family and was an extraordinary person who lived life to the fullest, and it is now difficult to figure out how to move on.
His father had given him the motorcycle the day before the crash and he was “the safest person in the world,” Gill Williams said.
“It’s very difficult for this to happen based on someone’s negligence,” he said, urging people to take driving a lot more seriously and keep an eye out for motorcycles. Statements from Williams’ wife, Pam, and his daughter, neither of whom attended the court hearing, were read out.
Pam Williams said in her statement that it was a tragic accident and that she hopes Koss can forgive himself.
“Our lives will never be the same, our family is torn apart and there is a huge hole that will be impossible to fill,” Pam Williams wrote in her statement.
Daughter Ellie Williams wrote in her statement that she was too angry and hurt at the time to forgive Koss, but hopes she will do so in the future.
“I will never feel my father’s hug again; I can get his advice again, introduce him to my future husband, walk him down the aisle, introduce him to my babies and have him cry when I name my first son after him,” a court official said as he read her. rack.
Koss originally pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor count of gross negligence resulting in death. Had he been convicted of this charge, he could have been sentenced to up to 15 years in prison.
Richard Treat Williams’ nearly 50-year career included starring roles in the TV series “Everwood” and the film “Hair.” He has appeared in more than 120 TV and film roles, including the films ‘The Eagle Has Landed’, ‘Prince of the City’ and ‘Once Upon a Time in America’.
Koss, the managing creative director of the Dorset Theater Festival in Vermont, said he had known Williams for years as a member of the close-knit community, as well as a fellow theater member, and considered him a friend. He issued a statement in August saying he was devastated by Williams’ death and offered his “sincere condolences” to Williams’ family, but he denied wrongdoing and said the allegations were not justified.
