Arkansas man charged for 2022 crash fatalities

The driver of a semi-truck has received charges for a 2022 multi-vehicle crash that killed a West Plains woman and her two children. Clayton Lane Rainwater, age 23, of Newark, Arkansas, is charged with three counts of felony involuntary manslaughter in the first degree and one count of felony assault in the second degree. The charges were filed on June 5, 2024, by the assistant prosecuting attorney of Howell County, Rizwan Ahad.

 

The May 25, 2022, crash claimed the lives of Alexias Crider, 22, and her two children, Aiden McDaniel, 2, and Brantly McDaniel, 1, as previously reported by Howell County News. The crash occurred near the US Highway 63 and State Route 17 intersection in West Plains. The vehicle Crider was driving was crushed underneath the cattle trailer. Crider and her two children were killed in the crash and a fourth occupant, another child, was in critical condition and taken to a Springfield hospital, according to a release by the West Plains Police.

 

Court documents filed with the charges give a more detailed picture of the crash. They state that the 1992 Peterbilt driven by Rainwater was headed north on Highway 63 and struck a Nissan Rogue driven by Chyanne Poole, now age 26, of West Plains, who was attempting to make a left turn from South Hill onto the highway. The truck continued north on Highway 63 and crossed over into oncoming traffic, striking a southbound Pontiac G6 driven by Crider head-on which caused the tractor-trailer to roll over on its side on top of the Pontiac, blocking the roadway. The court documents identify the minor in critical condition as Remington Crider. Poole and her passenger Taryn O'Dell suffered moderate injuries and were taken to Ozarks Healthcare by ambulance. Rainwater and his passenger, Eva Durham, were not injured in the crash.

 

West Plains Police spoke with several witnesses at the scene who stated that the tractor-trailer had failed to stop for the red light, according to court documents. Rainwater tested at 0.000% blood alcohol level according to a preliminary breath test at the scene. Two days after the crash, May 27, an inspection of the truck and trailer was conducted by West Plains Police and Missouri State Highway Patrol Commercial Vehicle Officers and revealed Out of Service Violations at the time of the crash. These violations were not listed in court documents.

 

When interviewed by police, Rainwater said he attempted to slow down when the light turned yellow and began to slide. He then let it back out to avoid a jackknife when he saw the SUV enter the intersection. Rainwater said he attempted to swerve around the SUV and clipped it, causing the cows in the trailer to shift. He said he thought he hit the Pontiac somewhere on the driver's side of his truck and it caused the truck to jackknife and turnover. Rainwater told police that with the rain and a load of cows, trying to stop on a dime does not work.

 

A wrongful death lawsuit was filed in June 2022 by the McDaniel and Crider families against Rainwater, Poole, Justin Francis and Dry Dirt Farms, LLC, Todd Drake, and Drake Poultry Farms, LLC, and the Missouri Highway and Transportation Commission, and settlements were made in early 2023.