NC man charged in limo accident that killed newlyweds

ASHEVILLE, NC (WYFF) - A limousine driver was charged on Tuesday for an Asheville crash that killed a newlywed couple who had just attended a college friend's wedding.

Asheville police Sgt. Dave Romick said Rodney Koon, 46, of Asheville, is charged with DWI and two counts of felony death by motor vehicle. A police release said the white 2003 Lincoln Town Car had gone over an embankment and struck a large tree.

Passengers in the limo, William Reid, 26, and his wife, Jamie, 25, both teachers from Philadelphia, had been married three months.

The couple met when they were both earning masters degrees at the University of Pennsylvania. They were married May 26. The crash that killed them happened on Aug. 11.

Jamie Reid's father, Ron Soukup, a retired engineer for Microsoft Corp., told the Philadelphia Inquirer that his daughter had the ultrasound pictures of their unborn child in her purse.

Soukup said his daughter died instantly, but Will Reid was conscious when paramedics arrived. Soukup said his son-in-law told paramedics to help his wife first because she was pregnant.

Will Reid died later at Mission Hospital.

Koon has been released on a $55,000 bond.