Fatal Amish buggy crash: Woman gets 90 days for attempted cover-up

STEWARTVILLE, Minn. (FOX 9) - A 37-year-old Kellogg woman who tried to take the blame for a fatal Amish buggy crash in southeastern Minnesota in 2023 was sentenced Monday for her role in the incident.

Sarah Beth Petersen will serve 90 days in the Fillmore County Jail, 120 days on home monitoring and four years of probation in connection with the case. 

Investigators learned her twin sister, Samantha Jo Peterson, was the driver of the SUV that struck the buggy, killing two children and leaving two others injured.

The guilty plea

What we know:

Sarah Petersen, 37, entered a guilty plea to two counts of aiding and abetting criminal vehicular operation in Fillmore County on Feb. 4, 2025.

Police say that during their investigation of the fatal crash that occurred on Sept. 25, 2023, Sarah attempted to deceive authorities by saying it was her behind the wheel, and not her sister.

Samantha Petersen, 37, also from Kellogg, is charged with 21 crimes, including multiple counts of criminal vehicular homicide, criminal vehicular operation, driving while under the influence, careless driving and speeding. She currently has a trial date set for July 14, 2025.

Fatal buggy crash

The backstory:

According to the criminal complaint, at about 8:26 a.m. on Sept. 25, 2023, authorities responded to a crash involving a vehicle and an Amish buggy on County Road 1 in rural Stewartville. When authorities arrived, they found an SUV with front-end damage parked along the shoulder of the southbound lane of County Road 1, with several people in the ditch just north.

Two children, ages 11 and 7, died as a result of the crash. The Amish buggy and a horse, that appeared to be dead, were also in the west ditch. 

A witness described the driver of the SUV that hit the buggy as a blonde woman wearing a Hy-Vee shirt. Witnesses said a second woman, who looked a lot like the driver, was also at the scene but "just sort of appeared."

Both women were already at the scene when authorities arrived — one, later identified as Sarah Beth Petersen, was wearing a black coat and black leggings, while the other, identified as Samantha Jo Petersen, was wearing a red shirt consistent with a Hy-Vee employee uniform before she changed into a black tank top. 

Authorities say Sarah Petersen was visibly upset when she told a Fillmore County Sheriff's deputy that she was the driver of the SUV that hit the buggy.

But when a deputy asked her for her ID, she said it was in a black SUV, not the SUV involved in the crash, charges said. 

Deputies noted Sarah and Samantha both looked extremely similar.

Attempted cover-up

Dig deeper:

According to charges, Sarah told the deputy she was driving and didn't see the buggy before she hit them, but that the silver SUV involved in the crash belonged to her sister, Samantha.

A conversation between the sisters was recorded, during which they discussed what law enforcement asked them, court documents detail. Sarah can be heard saying, "I think that one of the guys is onto me, but I don't really care" and "there's no way they would ever know the difference between the two of us, so they can't tell."

Sarah provided a picture of her insurance card, which had been canceled on Sept. 22, 2023, before the crash occurred. Deputies then seized her phone as evidence.

A red T-shirt and black smock worn by Hy-Vee employees were also found in the vehicle.