Driver Convicted of Negligent Homicide After Investigation Reveals Texting Led to Fatal Collision in 2019

For the first time in Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) history, the driver of a passenger vehicle was convicted of negligent homicide for a fatal collision caused by distracted driving.
 
On September 1, 2023, a Maricopa County Superior Court judge sentenced Amanda Schlief, 35, to four and a half years in prison for negligent homicide in the death of 25-year-old Clayton Trovillion.
 
On the evening of August 24, 2019, Schlief was driving southbound on State Route 101 in Peoria when she collided with the back of Trovillion’s motorcycle, causing him to be thrown from the motorcycle. Trovillion was transported to a hospital and succumbed to his injuries on August 31, 2019.
 
An investigation conducted by detectives from the AZDPS Vehicular Crimes Unit determined Schlief was actively engaged in a text conversation on her cell phone immediately prior to the crash. Schlief was indicted in 2021, and eventually pled guilty to negligent homicide in June of 2023.
 
 “Operating a motor vehicle is a serious responsibility,” said Lt. Colonel Deston Coleman Jr., Assistant Director of the Highway Patrol Division. “One moment of distraction can have life-or-death consequences. Tragedies such as this can be avoided with your help. Please do not text and drive.”

Learn more about Arizona's "Hands-Free" law (ARS 28-914): www.azleg.gov/ars/28/00914.htm