An Oklahoma state senator has been charged with manslaughter in a fatal car crash after authorities said she was speeding and driving recklessly in dangerous weather.
Sen. Allison Ikley-Freeman, 29, was driving about 90 mph in heavy rain and high winds when she crashed into 44-year-old Enrique Lopez’s car on the Turner Turnpike on May 22, Tulsa World reported.
The lawmaker, who was also seriously injured, was charged with first-degree manslaughter Monday in Lincoln County Court.
Speeding and reckless driving were cited as factors in the charge against Ikley-Freeman, a Democrat from Tulsa who lost her re-election bid last week three years after winning the seat during a special election.
Court records show bond was set for the senator at $30,000. She could not be reached for comment Tuesday, the newspaper reported.
Ikley-Freeman said last month that her extensive injuries in the crash — including six broken ribs, a ruptured spleen and multiple fractures to her vertebrae and pelvis — led her to take three months off the campaign trail.
She was pinned inside her vehicle for roughly 40 minutes at the crash scene. Her office said in May she was headed to the state capitol at the time, KOTV reported.
An attorney for the outgoing lawmaker, meanwhile, said he received a copy of the accusations facing Ikley-Freeman on Monday.
“However, we believe when the facts are completely vetted, it will show this was a tragic, unavoidable accident,” attorney John Hunsucker said in a statement. “Our sympathies for the family of Mr. Lopez.”
If convicted of first-degree manslaughter, Ikley-Freeman could serve anywhere from four years to life in prison, KOTV reported.



