A Minnesota father called it “mind-blowing” and “devastating” this week that Washington County’s top prosecutor is pursuing manslaughter and child endangerment charges against him for the deaths of his 10-year-old daughter and her 10-year-old best friend in an 800cc engine ATV rollover crash on the family’s Afton-area property more than a year ago.
Lance Koeckeritz, a 54-year-old husband and father of six surviving children, expressed surprise at County Attorney Kevin Magnuson’s charges in an interview with the Star Tribune, claiming that his daughter Savanna and her school friend Lexi Gibson died on April 22, 2023, as a result of a “freak accident.”
“We and the kids have spent hundreds of hours on four-wheelers. “It’s how we all grew up,” he explained. “There was no lack of belief in [Savanna’s] capabilities. She was making a left-hand turn when her wheel became stuck in a divot. It was simply unanticipated.”
The father described Magnuson’s decision to issue a manslaughter case summons as “devastating” and “mind-blowing” given how much his and Gibson’s families had already suffered.
“We lost both our daughter and her companion. According to the story, he described the situation as “devastating.” “It’s mind-boggling that the county prosecutor would consider charging anyone. Isn’t it enough that my other children had lost our daughter in a freak accident?”
Lance Koeckeritz stated on Facebook in April 2023 that Savanna and her “BFF” from school, Lexi, went out for an ATV ride and that Lexi had planned to “spend the weekend with her and go to a movie on Saturday.”
“At approx 5 pm both girls were found, the 4-wheeler had rolled over on top of them and they were not breathing,” according to him. After performing CPR, EMTs stopped their attempts around 5:45 and the girls were confirmed dead.
In a subsequent tweet, he expressed gratitude for everyone’s prayers and described his family’s sadness.
“As you can imagine, there is no such thing as ‘are you ok’, or ‘how are you doing’…. the answer is ‘barely functioning,'” declared Koeckeritz. “As a few have expressed having a loss of a child of their own can relate because it is a completely different grief versus when someone older passes who has had a chance to enjoy at least part of their life before passing.”
He stated that Savanna “brought so much joy and smiles to every person she came into contact with” and was “always happy.”
However, Washington County prosecutors now believe that the fatal crash on the 8.4-acre property was more than just a “freak accident,” and was caused by Koeckeritz’s alleged neglect or endangerment of the children.
Prosecutors claim that while Savanna’s mother, the defendant’s wife, was at work, Lance Koeckeritz was inside his office trailer from 1 p.m. until 5 p.m., which detectives found to be practically soundproof, with barely audible yelling outside the trailer door.
But when Koeckeritz’s wife returned home, eager to take the daughters to the movies, she couldn’t find Savanna and Lexi.
“J.R.K. intended to take VICTIM 1 and VICTIM 2 to the movies at 5:15 p.m. J.R.K. had conveyed her plans to KOECKERITZ earlier in the day, and at 4:00 p.m., she requested that another youngster at home prepare VICTIM 1 and VICTIM 2 for the movie,” according to the lawsuit. J.R.K. arrived at the home at 4:15 p.m. and was unable to locate VICTIM 1 or VICTIM 2 after searching for them for more than 15 minutes.
According to the complaint, another youngster discovered Savanna and Lexi “pinned under the ATV unconscious,” and “both [were] cold and blue.” According to investigators, an autopsy revealed that both girls died as a result of asphyxiation.
Lance Koeckeritz, meanwhile, is said to have “remained in the work trailer until he was informed of the emergency after VICTIM 1 and VICTIM 2 being located.”
The complaint stated that neither Savanna nor Lexi had “any protective gear (helmets, pads, etc.),” and cited Minnesota Department of Natural Resources off-highway vehicle restrictions for minors aged 10 and 11.
Those laws state that “[e]veryone under the age of 18 who is a passenger on or operator of an ATV must wear a DOT-certified helmet,” and that ATV riders under the age of 10 “may operate an ATV only on private property with the owner’s permission.”
The father “informed detectives the children are allowed to operate the ATV whenever they wanted, and they don’t need to check in with him or ask permission,” according to the allegations. “Further, he stated, ‘the girls would take the ATV for brief periods at a time’ and that they would return to a camper located on the property or the residence.'”
Authorities also said that the ATV Savanna and Lexi rode that day had an 800cc engine, despite the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources recommending a 110cc engine for youngsters aged 10 and 11.
An obituary mentioned Lexi Gibson’s “infectious laugh and brilliant smile.”
“She loved space and the northern lights and hanging out with her mom,” according to the death notice. “Lexi possessed wisdom beyond her years.”
Law&Crime reached out to the Washington County Attorney’s Office, which declined to comment. It is unclear at this moment whether Koeckeritz has an attorney.