King County Prosecutors have filed charges against professional skateboarder Cory Kennedy following a fatal car crash on Vashon last summer.
Documents filed in King County Superior Court on Feb. 1 show that Kennedy, age 27, has been charged with vehicular homicide, vehicular assault and reckless driving.
His arraignment is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 14, at the King County Courthouse, courtroom E1201.
Kennedy was driving on Aug. 30 when he failed to negotiate a sharp turn on Bank Road and slammed into two trees, injuring one passenger and killing another: Preston Maigetter. Maigetter, who was 45 at the time of his death, was a longtime professional skateboarder and video producer for Thrasher magazine. He and his family were new to the island at the time of the crash.
Court documents state that earlier in the evening on Aug. 30, the trio had been at the West Seattle Bowl; Kennedy later admitted he had drunk alcohol there. When they returned to the island, they went to the Red Bike and were on their way to Maigetter’s home when the crash occurred.
Shortly after 10 p.m., Kennedy was traveling at highway speeds in the 35 mph zone, according to the court records, when he failed to negotiate the sharp curve where Agren Road becomes Thorsen Road. That curve is marked with a 15 mph warning.The car slid off the road, over a gravel area and traveled 10 to 20 feet before broadsiding the trees. Maigetter, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, was killed instantly; the other passenger suffered a broken foot. Kennedy was not injured.
The incident report states that several empty beer cans were in the back seat. Initially, Kennedy claimed that he had had just one drink hours earlier, but a portable breath test showed a blood alcohol content (BAC) of just over .10 and inconsistent with that statement. A blood test drawn three hours after the crash showed his BAC was approximately .099 and consistent with being higher than .11 within two hours of the collision and well over the legal limit of .08.
Kennedy was arrested the evening of the crash but released on personal recognizance on Sept. 1.
The news of the crash traveled widely in the skateboard community, where both Maigetter and Kennedy are well known. It also traveled quickly among island skateboarders, as many young skaters have spent time with Kennedy and are fond of him.
Last summer, Marc Brown, the father of two teenage boys who skate, talked about Kennedy and his presence at the island skatepark, BARC.
“It was jaw-dropping for my kids because here’s this pro skater that they see in magazines and videos hanging out at the skate park and skating with them,” he said. “He’s involved with the kids. He isn’t this standoff pro athlete doing his own thing. He skates with them. There is no attitude to the kid.”
