Charges: Minnesota woman was high on meth when she struck Amish buggy, killing 2 children

FILLMORE COUNTY, Minn. — New court documents reveal that the twin sister of a 35-year-old southern Minnesota woman, who allegedly struck an Amish buggy while high on meth last fall, tried to take the blame.

There were four children in the buggy at the time of the crash that occurred shortly before 8:30 a.m. on Sept. 25, 2023. Two children, a 7- and 11-year-old, were killed. A 9- and 13-year-old were taken to St. Mary's Hospital with serious injuries.

Samantha Jo Peterson is facing 16 charges, including multiple counts of criminal vehicular homicide, criminal vehicular operation, DWI, speeding, careless driving and failure to provide proof of insurance in connection to the crash.

While responders arrived on the scene, a Fillmore County deputy was approached by a woman who identified herself as Sarah Beth Peterson and claimed she was the driver of the car that hit the buggy. 

The deputy activated his digital pocket recorder during his conversation with Sarah Peterson, court documents say. The two had a conversation inside his squad car about the incident, where Sarah Peterson told the deputy she didn't see the buggy and hit it while driving home from work in Rochester. She said she had been driving her twin sister Samantha's car since hers was in the shop.

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The deputy went to talk to other law enforcement officers and left his recorder on in the vehicle with Sarah Peterson. In the recording, Sarah Peterson is allegedly heard saying to her sister, "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."

Investigators say they took statements from Sarah and Samantha Peterson's store manager and human resources manager at Hy-Vee, where they both worked, regarding the crash.

The store manager told police that Samantha Peterson had messaged him and the HR manager saying she was "messed up" and under the influence of methamphetamine at the time of the crash.

The HR manager said that they had called Samantha Peterson around 10 a.m. the day of the crash and some of the first words she said were, "I just killed two Amish people; they were kids," and said she wasn't sober, eventually admitting to the HR manager she was high on meth.

When asked why Sarah Peterson would take the fall for her sister, police say the store manager believed it was because Samantha Peterson took care of Sarah Peterson's children while she was in prison and she felt the need to help.

Sarah Peterson's 13-year-old daughter allegedly told a school social worker that her mom wasn't the one driving during the crash and drove to the scene afterward. The social worker reported the conversation to authorities, believing the teen girl would not be willing to speak to them.  

Authorities were granted a search warrant to retrieve Samantha Peterson's cell phone and a blood and urine sample. The sample showed the presence of methamphetamine, amphetamine, Delta-9 THC, and the metabolite of the latter, according to court documents.

A search of Samantha Peterson's cell phone revealed a text she sent on Sept. 25 writing, in part, "I hit that Amish buggy and killed two ppl [sic]." She continued, "Made Sarah come there and take the fall for it so I wouldn't go to prison."

Charging documents say her browser history also revealed searches such as "What happens if you get in an accident with an Amish buggy and kill two people" and "If you hit a buggy and kill two people are you going to prison?"

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A crash reconstruction concluded that Samantha Peterson would have had to have been traveling between 63-71 mph at the time of the crash. The speed limit where the crash occurred is 55 mph. Additionally, the Minnesota State Patrol says the road was clear for over 1,400 feet before the crash scene and there were no obstructions present.

Samantha Peterson has a criminal record that includes convictions of fourth- and third-degree DWI.

Her first court appearance is scheduled for March 25.

Note: The video above originally aired on Oct. 20, 2023.