MONROE — A Darlington man has been acquitted of charges related to the death of a retired Sun Prairie educator and coach in a traffic crash on Jan. 10, 2020.

The trial in Columbia County Circuit Court in Portage ended on Feb. 8 with a finding of not guilty for Weston Hugh Ritchie, who had been charged with one count of vehicular homicide resulting from the 2020 crash. 

According to court records, the 26-year-old Darlington man was acquitted by a jury of the single charge that stemmed from the two-vehicle collision in 2020.

The crash happened just before 9:30 a.m., officials said, when a truck driven by Ritchie — heading west on County Highway CS — hit a 2008 Chevy Impala making a left turn at the intersection of County Highway V in Columbia County, north of Madison.

According to published reports, the crash occurred as the truck was traveling at about 50 mph.

The victim, Steve Riggins, a retired Sun Prairie High School social studies teacher and track coach, was the only occupant of the Impala.

Court records in Lafayette County show no prior run-ins with the legal system for Ritchie, save for a minor traffic violation in 2020.