Waukesha crash: Teen killed, man sentenced to 10 years in prison

WAUKESHA, Wis. - The man charged in a Waukesha crash that killed 17-year-old Megan Voss pleaded guilty and was sentenced to prison on Thursday. 

Prison time

In Court:

Jason Zehe, 19, pleaded guilty to two felonies: homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle and second-degree recklessly endangering safety. Two other felonies and three misdemeanors were dismissed.

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"I'm sincerely sorry. There aren't enough words to describe how sorry I am," Zehe said before he was sentenced.

Judge Michael Aprahamian then sentenced Zehe to 10 years in prison and 10 years of extended supervision. He also ordered Zehe to undergo treatment, stay sober and complete 200 hours of community service. Eight of those community service hours must be done every year on Dec. 30, the day he killed Voss.

"It was his decision to get in the car. He could have called an Uber. He didn't," said Aprahamian. 

What's next:

Waukesha County District Attorney Leslie Boese said charges are still being considered against the parents of Zehe's girlfriend. Zehe said he had gotten drunk at that home a hundred times since he was 15 years old and the girlfriend's mother would supply the alcohol. He left her house before the crash.

Megan Voss

What we know:

Voss was a student at Waukesha West High School. Family members remembered her as loving and dedicated to her faith. They said she planned to become a nurse.

"She would want me to pray for you. I want you to think about her and your life," Carlie Joerres, Voss' sister, said in court.

"Now all I have left is a hole in my heart that will never be filled," said Lynn Miksh, Voss' grandmother.

Voss’s brother previously told FOX6 News the family was looking forward to Voss' graduation in the spring. He also said their dog, Bleu, who was in the car with Voss, had to be euthanized because of his injuries.

Waukesha crash

The backstory:

Investigators determined a vehicle was speeding on Sunset Drive, ran a stop sign and hit two other vehicles at Sunset and Guthrie on Dec. 30, 2024. A Waukesha police officer spotted a car, an SUV and a pickup truck at the scene.

Flight for Life took one crash victim, later identified as 17-year-old Megan Voss, to a hospital. She died as a result of injuries sustained in the crash. The other people involved in the crash had non-life-threatening injuries. Officials also noted a man outside the pickup truck, later identified as Zehe.

The complaint said Zehe told police: "I'm just a stupid boyfriend. I am just trying to take her home." When investigators asked him what happened, he said: "I was trying to take her home and then all of a sudden, I don't know, I don't know what happened." He was then asked if he was headed in the direction his vehicle was facing at the crash scene, and he answered: "Yes, I am not some (expletive) drunkard all the time. I-I-I crashed."

Zehe was arrested for operating while intoxicated. While being transported to a hospital to be checked, the criminal complaint said a paramedic asked him if he had been drinking that night, and he said: "Nothing. No. Like literally nothing. That's what I am saying." He also denied using drugs.

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However, prosecutors said Zehe later said "I just wish I wasn't drunk" while being treated in the ambulance. He later said "I am the one driving, and yeah, I should get charged." At the hospital, a doctor later told an officer that Zehe said "I was a drunk piece of (expletive)."

Investigators said Zehe had been drinking wine and vodka for eight hours before the crash. His BAC was 0.249 – more than three times the legal limit.