'Distracted' Semi Trucker Kills Missionary Family

Bail $1 million for semi driver charged in fatal crash

"A semi driver involved in a fatal crash on Interstate 80 was formally charged Tuesday with five counts of felony motor vehicle homicide and one count of misdemeanor reckless driving."

"Weekly was 'inattentive and distracted by outside influences' when he rammed into a minivan ahead of him 'at a high rate of speed,' Nebraska State Patrol Trooper Darrell Crawford of Ogallala said"

"Jamison and Kathryne Pals, both 29, and their children, Ezra, 3, Violet, almost 2, and 2½-month-old Calvin were killed on Interstate 80 west of Brule when their westbound minivan was struck from behind by a semitrailer truck. The force of the collision pushed the two vehicles into three other westbound vehicles. The semi and van both became engulfed in flames."

"The Palses intended to serve as long-term missionaries in Nagoya, Japan. They were headed to Palmer Lake, Colorado, for a five-week session on learning a language and assimilating into another culture, said Dennis Vogan, an official with the ministry organization WorldVenture."