A Sparta man was picked up recently on a warrant that stemmed from a fatal crash last year in Red Bud.

The North County News reported that on July 30, William D. Reese, 47, was arrested by the Randolph County Sheriff’s Office on a warrant for reckless homicide.

The charge was based on the assertion that Reese was using his phone at the time of a Nov. 15, 2024 fatal two-vehicle crash at the intersection of West Market Street and Linn Street in Red Bud.

Emergency personnel responded shortly before 9 a.m. that day to the crash. A 2012 Ford F150 Raptor driven by William Reese, 47, of Sparta, was traveling eastbound on Market Street, while a Ford Escape driven by Sandra Vessels, 68, of Red Bud, was traveling westbound on Market Street. 

Red Bud firefighters extricated Vessels from her vehicle, and she was transported by MedStar ambulance to Mercy Hospital South in St. Louis County, where she later succumbed to her injuries. 

Reese was cited then for improper use of an electronic communications device (cell phone), improper lane usage and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.

The reckless homicide charge is a Class 3 felony.

Reese was granted pretrial release with a court hearing scheduled for Aug. 18.