John Jefferson
Left to right: Sarah Petersen, Samantha Petersen (Olmsted County Sheriff’s Office).
A Minnesota woman belatedly took responsibility this week for the crimes she committed on behalf of her twin sister. Those crimes, however, are far less severe than what she originally allegedly admitted to.
Sarah Beth Petersen, 35, ultimately pleaded guilty to two felony counts of criminal vehicular operation that caused great bodily harm. But both of those counts are about what she did after a fatal crash that killed two Amish children in September 2023 — a crash allegedly caused by her nearly identical sister, Samantha Jo Petersen, 35.
The twins are accused of plotting to switch places after Samantha Petersen’s 2005 Toyota 4Runner SUV struck a horse-drawn carriage — typical of those in the Amish faith — owned by the Miller family.
Wilma Miller, 7, and Irma Miller, 11, were killed, along with one horse. Two of their siblings were also injured but survived.
After the tragic crash, witnesses described something bizarre.
First, a woman was seen walking around with a cellphone, according to the Fillmore County Sheriff’s Office criminal complaint obtained by the Post Bulletin. Then, another woman allegedly appeared on the scene. She looked mostly the same as the other woman — but for her clothes, witnesses told a sheriff’s deputy.
One witness described one of the sisters as a “blonde female.” A second witness described the presumed driver as: “wearing black clothing, no eyeglasses, really light blonde hair, was taller.”
The complaint goes on, in relevant part:
The second lady had a T-shirt with no sleeves on and she looked a little bit smaller than the first lady. (The second witness) wasn’t sure how the second lady got there; she just sort of appeared. Leroy saw the second lady give the first lady a hug and heard the first lady say that she didn’t see them until it was too late …
Sarah Petersen took the fall.
An ensuing investigation sent the case into a tailspin.
“There’s no way they would ever know the difference between the two of us so they can’t tell,” Sarah Petersen told her sister while sitting in a squad car — recorded by the law enforcement vehicle’s own system.
Investigators later allegedly uncovered a series of incriminating text messages on Samantha Petersen’s cellphone.
“Made Sarah come and take the fall for it so I wouldn’t go to prison,” the sister allegedly told a friend.
Internet searches also found on Samantha Petersen’s cellphone were said to be equally incriminating and allegedly included: “What happens if you get in an accident with an Amish buggy and kill two people” and “if you hit a buggy and kill two people are you going to prison?”
In early February 2024, Samantha Petersen was charged with 21 total counts. Two days later, Sarah Petersen was charged with 16 felony counts.
On Tuesday, Sarah Petersen took a plea deal, according to the Post Bulletin.
“I did,” she reportedly said during a settlement hearing. “I lied.”
The defendant said she received a frantic phone call from her sister on the morning of Sept. 25, 2023.
“She was crying,” Sarah Petersen said. “She was panicking and scared.”
The defendant said her twin sister explained that she did not see the buggy when she crossed over a hill — and then made the fateful request that would wrench their so-shared lives asunder.
“At first, I said no,” Sarah Petersen told her attorney before the court. “Then she made a comment saying she would go to prison for a long time.”
For that admitted perfidy in service of her sibling, Sarah Petersen faces a maximum sentence of six months in jail and four years on probation.
Third Judicial District Judge Jeremy Clinefelter is overseeing the case; he has yet to formally accept the plea agreement. That is slated to occur on March 31 — which will be followed by sentencing. The remaining 14 charges against her will be dismissed.
Samantha Petersen, however, faces far more uncertainty — though a handful of the initial charges filed against her have since been dismissed. She faces charges including criminal vehicular homicide, felony criminal operation, driving while impaired, and careless driving.
Her trial is currently scheduled to begin on July 14.
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