Former Bachelor star Chris Soules finally speaks out about his fatal car crash that led to his arrest. He spoke about how his life has changed since the accident that resulted in the death of a 66-year-old army veteran and explains why he left the scene of the fatal accident.
Fans know Soules from the 10th season of The Bachelorette, as the charming farmer from rural Iowa who vied for the heart of Andi Dorfman but was sent home in week 9. After he went on to be the star of The Bachelor on season 19, where he proposed to Whitney Bischoff, but the couple later called off the engagement. He then was a contestant of season 19 of Dancing with the Stars where he finished in 5th place. Two years after his season ended, Soules was arrested and later convicted for leaving the scene of an accident involving Kenneth Mosher, a local farmer, husband, father of two, and grandfather of three. Soules pleading guilty in 2018 to a reduced misdemeanor charge of leaving the scene of a personal injury accident and is now serving two years of probation.
On Thursday, Soules sat down with Good Morning America, where he opened up about what really happened that night of the accident and explained why he left when he did. He opened up about the lasting pain the fatal accident brought on him as well as recognizing the terrible loss he caused for the Mosher family. He said, "It made everything really hard on my family and everyone around me, including myself." Soules described the day of the accident just a regular working day on the farm, explaining that he was on his way to pick up one of his employees when he was driving down that dark rural road when he crashed into the tractor that was being driven by Mosher. The documents say that Mosher was driving the tractor without lights on. He explained that after the collision, he climbed out of his truck and immediately called 911 when he saw Mosher in a ditch nearby. Soules claimed to have attempted CPR on the man, but then after he decided to leave the scene of the accident - a decision that has been criticized by many. Watch the full interview below:
He explains his fateful decision, saying "I don’t know that I was thinking clearly." He continued, "I notified the authorities of what had happened, the paramedics were there, but now I know I was scared and wanted to be in a safer place and be outta there." Police later found Soules in his home where he informed him that Mosher had died and then was then arrested. Many have questioned Soules as to why he left the scene of the accident, and He explained, "I had nothing to hide, honestly." According to the police report, there were several alcoholic beverage cans found in Soules' truck, but he maintains he didn't drink that night and that the truck belonged to his employees "and those cans could have been anybody's." He goes on to explain that there were four witnesses who "swore under oath that they saw no evidence" of Soules appearing intoxicated. Soules say that while he got off on a misdemeanor, he says that his guilt is his sentence:
A man did die and that was a tragedy. My sentence is living with this for the rest of my life ... The sentence is replaying that moment standing there on the pavement and walking up to a man that wasn’t breathing … knowing I was involved in that - that’s the sentence that I’ve been given.
There is the guilt and pain that both Soules and Mosher's family will endure the remainder of their lives. It seems that Soules understood the gravity of his actions, however, maintaining that although he left the scene of the accident - he had nothing to hide. The former Bachelor also said he'd like to meet with the Mosher family and attempt at healing together.
Source: GMA