A semi-tractor driver has been charged with manslaughter more than three months after a crash at a Saratoga Springs intersection killed 13-year-old Parker Samuel Gale and left his mother and younger sister hospitalized. Michael Lynn Fowers, 53, of Genola, was formally charged on Monday in Utah's 4th District Court in Utah County following the investigation into the May 14 collision.
According to KSL News, Fowers was driving a semi-tractor towing two side dump trailers eastbound on Pony Express Parkway when he struck a northbound minivan broadside at the intersection with Mountain View Corridor. The minivan had entered the intersection on a green light, the outlet reports. Parker was seated in the front passenger seat; his mother and three younger siblings, including a 10-year-old sister, were also in the vehicle.
Parker suffered serious injuries and was transported to a local hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. He died from his injuries a few days after the crash, according to the report, and funeral services were held in Saratoga Springs the following month, per Utah Valley Mortuary. His mother was admitted to the hospital with serious injuries of her own, and his 10-year-old sister was hospitalized with a concussion.
Dash-Cam Footage Reportedly Shows No Braking
Charging documents cited by the station indicate Fowers was traveling 40 mph in a 50-mph zone and entered the intersection eight seconds after the light turned red for him, without braking or otherwise reacting until the moment of impact. Witnesses and dash-cam video reportedly corroborated that timeline. Fowers told police he thought the light was green when he drove through it, the report states.
Fowers was charged with manslaughter, a second-degree felony, along with four counts of reckless endangerment, a class A misdemeanor, corresponding to Parker's mother and three surviving siblings in the minivan. Under Utah Code § 76-5-205, second-degree felony manslaughter carries a statutory prison sentence of one to 15 years, fines up to $10,000, and mandatory driver's license revocation, according to the Utah Legislature. Each misdemeanor reckless endangerment count carries a maximum sentence of up to 364 days in jail upon conviction, per Cardon Stuart Law.
A GoFundMe was organized to help the Gale family cover medical expenses and funeral costs following Parker's death.
Same Intersection Saw Another Semi Crash Weeks Later
The May 14 crash was not an isolated incident at the intersection of Mountain View Corridor and Pony Express Parkway. Less than two months later, on July 2, another semi-truck collided with an SUV at the same junction, spilling diesel fuel and closing multiple lanes, according to a report from the law firm CKO Law.
Statewide, disregarding traffic signals was the primary contributing factor in 5% of fatal crashes, while failing to yield right-of-way accounted for 11%, according to data from the Utah Highway Safety Office. Preliminary 2025 figures from the Utah Department of Transportation and Department of Public Safety showed overall road deaths in the state dropped to 264 from 277 the year before, even as teen traffic fatalities nearly doubled, from 18 to 31.
Growth Along the Corridor Outpaces Road Capacity
Saratoga Springs led all Utah municipalities in population growth in 2025, adding 4,682 residents in a single year as development expanded across northern Utah County, Hoodline previously reported. That surge has placed growing pressure on arterial roads like Pony Express Parkway and Mountain View Corridor.
UDOT has planned a 10.7-mile southern extension of Mountain View Corridor through Saratoga Springs, from Pioneer Crossing to Redwood Road, projected to divert up to 22,000 vehicles daily off secondary roads, according to UDOT's project materials. Transportation planners project daily traffic along the corridor will surpass 150,000 trips by 2050, prompting long-term plans to convert the route into a fully grade-separated freeway.
It remains unclear whether any signal timing or enforcement changes have been made at the Pony Express Parkway intersection since the May crash or the July collision that followed it.
