Amish Mother Forced To Deliver Baby Two Months Early After Hit & Run; Suspected Driver Identified, But Still Not Arrested

The father of an Amish woman, badly injured in a hit-and-run crash along with her two small children, has written a letter to a local news station providing more details on the condition of his daughter and grandchildren.

Martha Wagler, age 27, was in a buggy in her community in Williams County, Ohio, on November 12, when the buggy was struck from behind by a pickup truck. The driver fled, leaving behind a badly injured pregnant woman and two young children.

This new report from WTVG gives more detail on the serious injuries and consequences suffered by the family – including having to deliver a baby girl two months early:

The pregnant woman in the buggy was forced to deliver her baby two months early, and her other two children were seriously injured. Body camera audio captured a trooper saying, “A baby over there has a deep gash on his head.”

In a letter to 13 Action News, the father of the woman wrote that his youngest granddaughter was born two months early and remains in the hospital. She will be there for more than a month, and the family has been unable to hold the baby.

The grandfather said his granddaughter, who was riding in the buggy, had a broken elbow with pins in her arm. Her brother is now home recovering from a skull fracture.

Just a few days ago, it was reported that state police had identified the driver of the truck believed to have been involved in the hit-and-run as Michael D. Quillen, 32, of Bryan. No charges have yet been filed “as state troopers gather evidence.”

Hopefully those will come soon and there will be an arrest made. The grandfather who wrote the letter says that, quoting the story, “he’s thankful his daughter and grandkids are alive, and he’s grateful for the community’s help.”

Support from the Community

The non-Amish community has joined the Amish in supporting Martha and her family. That has taken various forms, including a fundraiser:

Tom Harding, who has known the family since they moved to the community, said he was disturbed by the crime.

“I was pretty upset, concerned about who it could be, and then the news was coming in pretty fast to me from other people in the community,” Harding said.

Harding said he took a turkey to the family for Thanksgiving. He said there are people helping with chores and neighbors are helping take care of animals.

There is a fundraiser set up at GoFundMe, and there will be another fundraiser, a 50-50 raffle at the State Line Gun Show, on December 20th.

If you’d like to support the family, you can find the GoFundMe link here or see the embed below. The fundraiser’s purpose is said to be to raise money for the family’s medical bills and to help them to get a lawyer. The fundraiser’s organizer Kelly Petersen shares more details:

In light of the unfortunate events that happened the evening of Wednesday, November 12th, involving a hit and run with a horse and buggy, we are fundraising to support the affected family. That buggy included a pregnant wife and mother with two little ones. The mother delivered a baby girl two months early.

They are both being attended to in Ft. Wayne, while the two other children, ages 1 and 3, are in Columbus. They both have skull fractures among other broken bones and will have a long recovery.

Let’s come together as a community to help as much as we can. My goal is $10,000, but surpassing that would be absolutely amazing.

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