After-School Crash That Killed 4 Likely Not Intentional: Cops

UPDATE Apr 30, 2025 12:30 AM CDT

The driver who crashed through an Illinois building hosting an after-school program, killing four students, is not believed to have acted intentionally, police say. Marianne Akers, 44, left the roadway for as-yet-unknown reasons and traveled through a field before smashing into the building and exiting through the other side, People reports. She was the only person in the car, and was taken to a hospital for evaluation but was otherwise unharmed, NBC News reports. It's not clear if she's been released, but police say she is not in custody as the investigation continues and toxicology results are pending. "The cause of the crash remains under investigation, but this does not appear to be a targeted attack," state police said in a statement.

Apr 29, 2025 6:32 AM CDT

Accidental or deliberate? The question remained unanswered Tuesday morning after a car smashed through a building hosting an after-school program in the small Illinois town of Chatham.

• Authorities say four female students between the ages of 4 and 18 were killed, reports NBC News. Three of them were struck while standing outside the building.
• Several others were injured, including one person who was airlifted to a hospital.

• The driver appeared to be uninjured and was still undergoing evaluation at a hospital, per the AP. The person has not been identified, and no charges have been filed. No one else was in the vehicle.
• The car struck a building housing Youth Needing Other Things Outdoors, entering through its east wall and exiting through its west wall, reports the Washington Post.
• "I am horrified and deeply saddened by the deaths of children and numerous injuries in Chatham this afternoon," said Gov. JB Pritzker in a statement. Chatham, near Springfield, has a population of about 15,000 (The deaths come just days after a car rammed into festival-goers in Vancouver, killing 11.)