Bachelor Chris Soules attends a taping of Dancing with the Stars, his first public appearance after being sentenced for a fatal crash. The crash that claimed the life of a 66-year-old army veteran back in 2017 when 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 20, 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. 66-year-old Mosher was transported to a local hospital after the accident, where he later died of his injuries. Soules was taken into custody at his Iowa home after he was accused of leaving the scene of the fatal crash before the police arrived.
In plea deal obtained by Us, Soules was originally charged with a Class D felony and faced up to five years in prison but he pleaded guilty to a charge related to the incident, which resulted in him facing a "the lesser-included offense" of "Leaving the Scene of a Personal Injury Accident." In August 2019, according to court documents, Soules agreed to a two-year suspended prison sentence and two years of probation. Just weeks after his sentencing in the involvement of the fatal car crash, Soules’ appeared at the season 28 taping of the show, where he's seen applauding in the audience. This is his first public appearance since his sentencing.
Soules had been on season 20 of Dancing with the Stars where he danced with pro Witney Carson, but later when Soules suffered a calf injury during rehearsal on Disney week, he was eliminated in week 8, finishing him in 5th place. Fast forward four years later, Carson saw him in the audience at the Dancing with the Stars taping and said to Us Weekly, "It was so nice to see him. I had no idea he was going to be here." She continued, "I haven’t heard from him in years, literally. So the fact that he showed up was a shock, but I was so happy to see him. He’s awesome. Great guy."
The Bachelor and Dancing with the Stars alum may have been facing difficulties regarding his personal life, but he still came out to support the celebrities and pros dancing on the primetime ABC show. Even though he's on probation, there is nothing that can stop him from going to tapings of Dancing with the Stars.
Dancing with the Stars airs Mondays at 8pm EST on ABC.
Source: Us