Woman previously convicted of killing cyclist arrested Saturday night after 2 pedestrians killed on West Plains

A woman previously convicted in Spokane County Superior Court of killing a cyclist in a collision more than 10 years ago was arrested by Spokane County sheriff’s deputies after midnight Sunday after first responders discovered two pedestrians who were killed on the West Plains.

Deputies arrested Megan C. Skillingstad, 29, on suspicion of two counts of vehicular homicide and two counts of hit and run after they found her in a vehicle near where the pedestrians were found.

According to a release from the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to a report of a woman lying in a ditch on West Trails Road, east of North Flint Road, at about 11:45 p.m. Saturday. First responders who arrived on the scene discovered the woman and a man, neither of whose identities has been released.

Tire marks, vehicle debris and a Washington license plate were on the shoulder of the roadway.

A caller reported a dark-colored pickup truck with front end damage less than a mile away about 40 minutes after the initial call, the sheriff’s office said.

A deputy discovered Skillingstad, who appeared to be impaired, in the truck, the sheriff’s office said. Damage to the vehicle was consistent with the collision, and the license plate found on the ground matched the truck Skillingstad was in.

A preliminary investigation found that the truck was traveling west on West Trails Road when it approached a curve, left the roadway, struck the two pedestrians, continued and struck several fence posts before coming to a stop just south of West Trails Road near North Old Trails Road.

Skillingstad consented to sobriety evaluations and was arrested shortly after. A sample of her blood was also taken.

Skillingstad was convicted of vehicular homicide in 2013 at the age of 19 when she struck a 66-year-old cyclist, Dennis Widener, on June 23, 2011. According to court records, she was driving north on North Division Street at 4:38 a.m. when she struck Widener, who was riding his bike west through a crosswalk on East Empire Avenue.

Skillingstad fled from the scene, documents said. Widener died of his injuries weeks after the collision.

Skillingstad told multiple friends and family of the incident but refused to turn herself in, court documents said. One of them eventually tipped off police about her involvement in the collision.

Skillingstad pleaded guilty in 2013 to failure to remain at the scene of a fatal hit and run.

Spokane County Superior Court Judge Harold Clarke sentenced Skillingstad, who had no prior criminal history at the time, to one year in prison, well below the standard range of 31-41 months. She was also ordered to serve 240 hours of community custody.