A preliminary hearing on a Barton County case for two counts of involuntary manslaughter will be rescheduled, at the request of the defense attorney.
William Howard Baker faces charges in the deaths of a Reno County man and wife who were riding motorcycles through Great Bend last August. Baker, who was 59 years old at the time, was driving a pickup that was pulling a trailer carrying an mower, and the trailer came loose on 10th St., hitting the approaching motorcycles. Shawn Schellenger, 27, and his wife Danielle, 33, died as a result of the accident.
Baker’s preliminary hearing was scheduled for Wednesday morning. According to Barton County Attorney Douglas Matthews, Baker’s defense attorney contacted court officials on Tuesday and asked for the postponement. A new date for the hearing has not been set.
No arrests were made at the time of the accident. Charges were filed in June of this year, after lab tests on evidence collected after the accident were complete. Baker was also charged with four traffic violations, because the county attorney’s office alleges the trailer did not have an adequate safety chain and the load was not securely fastened.
Baker remains free on a $50,000 own-recognizance bond.