Judge delays sentence for ‘The Bachelor’ star in Iowa crash

INDEPENDENCE, Iowa – A judge has delayed sentencing for former “The Bachelor” star Chris Soules for leaving the scene of a fatal 2017 accident.

The decision comes after Judge Andrea Dryer ruled Tuesday that she will disregard letters from the deceased driver’s relatives. Dryer says the wife and sons of Iowa farmer Kenneth Mosher aren’t victims under state law because Soules was not convicted of causing Mosher’s death.

Soules pleaded guilty to a misdemeanour for leaving after rear-ending a slow-moving tractor driven by Mosher.

Mosher’s relatives wrote victim impact statements urging Dryer to impose the maximum sentence of two years in prison. The letters were included in the Department of Correctional Services’ presentence investigation report.

Dryer agreed with Soules’ lawyers that the letters should be stricken. She ordered a new presentence investigation.