Two drag racers have been sentenced for the fatal crash that took the life of one of their passengers and injured another. The Erie County District Attorney's Office says 20-year-old Kody Schroeder of Holland and 18-year-old Mercedes Castillo of Holland have been sentenced by State Supreme Court Justice Penny Wolfgang for a deadly crash in April.
Schroeder received 2-1/3 to 7 years in prison. Castillo received six months in jail, five years probation and the court adjudicated her a youthful offender, which means she will not have a criminal record.
On the afternoon of April 12, the DA says Castillo was racing a car on Center Street in Colden alongside a speeding car driven by Schroeder, who was impaired by marihuana. Schroeder’s vehicle then crashed into the back of a pickup truck that was turning into the driveway.
The collision resulted in the death of Schroeder’s passenger, 28-year-old Chauncey Kloiber of Wales, and the serious physical injury of another passenger, 20-year-old Tabitha Trautwein of Holland. Trautwein is still recovering at a rehabilitation center.
