Driver charged after ATV crash that killed wife on Cedar Mountain – St George News

File photo of a Kane County Sheriff’s patrol car, Kanab, Utah, January 22, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Kane County Emergency Services, St. George News

ST. GEORGE – Nearly four years after a woman was killed in a rollover accident on Cedar Mountain, a Kane County man has been charged with a felony in connection with the incident.

On Tuesday, Ashley R. Pyne, 51, of Duck Creek, was formally charged with vehicular manslaughter, a second-degree felony, according to court records from the Kane County District Attorney’s Office.

The case was filed following a reported rollover accident on September 11, 2020, in the Meadow View Estates neighborhood on Cedar Mountain, according to a press release issued by the Kane County Sheriff’s Office at the time of the accident.

On the night of the accident, Pyne was driving an SUV with his wife, 40-year-old Amy Joelle Knowlton, in the back seat. They were reportedly on their way home from a party. The state alleges Pyne was driving at a high rate of speed along Rim Road when he took a sharp turn too fast and entered a ditch, causing the SUV to overturn.

Knowlton, a mother of three, was ejected from the ATV and pronounced dead by emergency responders. Pyne was taken to Cedar City Hospital in Iron County for medical treatment.

According to the charging documents, Pyne allegedly drank alcohol at the party before the accident, and test results showed his blood alcohol level was 0.016 – more than three times the legal limit.

It took almost four years before the lawsuit was filed.

Kane County Prosecutor Robert Van Dyke told St. George News he could not provide any further information on the case because charges are still pending. He added that more details may be released as the case progresses.

An initial appearance is scheduled for June 27 in 6th District Court in Kanab. The defendant is represented by defense attorney Douglas Terry.

This report is based on statements from court records, police or other law enforcement agencies and may not contain the full extent of the findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or until a trial judge determines otherwise.

St. George News senior reporter Mori Kessler contributed to this report.

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