A 35-year-old Excelsior Springs man is facing a felony charge after a Clay County grand jury indicted him nearly five months after a hit-and-run crash left a Wisconsin man dead on a rural road near Interstate 35. Matthew R. Lavigne was taken into custody on September 1, 2026, and, after his September 2, 2026, court appearance, his bond was reduced from $250,000 to $50,000 cash or surety, with 10% posting permitted.
The case dates back to April 13, when a passing semi-truck driver on nearby Interstate 35 spotted a person lying on Edgar Petty Road, just north of NE 116th Street, and alerted authorities. Deputies arrived at 7:10 a.m. to find 37-year-old Steven C. Notari, an out-of-state resident from Wisconsin, dead at the scene, according to the Clay County Sheriff's Office. As reported by FOX4 Kansas City, Lavigne allegedly struck and killed Notari with his car before leaving the scene.
The sheriff's office release does not explain what brought Notari to that stretch of road near the interstate that morning. It does not address the circumstances that put him there.
Piecing Together the Evidence
On the day of the crash, the sheriff's office says the Platte County Sheriff's Office provided specialized surveying assistance to help Clay County crash investigators process the scene. Early forensic work on vehicle debris left behind led investigators to narrow their search to a 2013–2018 Ford Focus bearing fresh front-end damage, according to the sheriff's office.
From there, the investigation stretched on for months. Per FOX4's reporting, investigators analyzed license plate reader photos, business surveillance footage, and cell phone data, while also conducting interviews tied to the case. Car parts recovered at the crash scene and the victim's blood found on Lavigne's car were both cited by investigators, the station reports.
Suspect Denies Knowing He Hit Anyone
Lavigne was arrested on September 1, 2026, and charged in connection with the deadly hit-and-run. According to sheriff's deputies, he denied ever knowing he had struck anyone. The Clay County Prosecutor's Office helped present evidence to the grand jury, which returned a single count against Lavigne of leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death.
Following his indictment on September 2, as reported by the Excelsior Citizen, Lavigne entered a formal plea of not guilty to the charge. He had already appeared Wednesday morning, and his next appearance is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 8.
Under Missouri Revised Statutes § 577.060, leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident resulting in death is a Class D felony, carrying a potential penalty of up to seven years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000, according to the Missouri Revisor of Statutes. It remains unclear whether prosecutors intend to pursue any additional charges, or what specific evidence investigators believe places Lavigne at the scene given his denial.
A Pattern of Unsolved Cases and Rising Pedestrian Deaths
This is not the only hit-and-run case that has tested Clay County investigators in recent years. Hoodline previously reported that the sheriff's office was still hunting a driver in a hit-and-run mystery tied to the 2023 death of 30-year-old pedestrian John Paul Scheidecker, a case that remained active as of July.
Notari's death also lands within a broader and troubling trend across the state. Missouri Department of Transportation data released in February 2025 showed the state recorded a record 148 pedestrian fatalities in 2024, a 16% jump from the prior year, even as overall roadway deaths fell 4%, according to the Missouri Department of Transportation. Mid-year tracking cited by KCUR found 128 pedestrians killed on Missouri roads through early November 2025, a 22% increase over the same stretch the year before.
State lawmakers have moved to address distracted driving, one factor tied to the broader rise in road deaths, through the Siddens-Bening Hands-Free Law, which bars handheld device use behind the wheel. Distracted driving contributed to more than 100 deaths annually in both 2023 and 2024, according to the AASHTO Journal. For now, the Clay County case moves forward with Lavigne's 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 8, court date, as investigators and prosecutors continue working through the evidence gathered over five months.
