A tragic drunk-driving accident left a teenager permanently disabled and claimed the lives of three of his friends. Despite undergoing 11 surgeries, he still struggles to use his left arm, a devastating outcome from the crash.
Trevor Bogert miraculously survived a horrific crash that claimed the lives of three of his friends in February 2023 in Lincoln County, Missouri.
Since then, he has endured an agonizing two-and-a-half months in the hospital, followed by seven months in a wheelchair.
His grandfather shared the family’s heartbreak as his grandson continues to battle life-changing injuries nearly two years after the tragedy.
Bogert is suffering not just physically but also mentally – and relives the accident ‘every single day since Feb 5, 2023,’ he said.
The teen faced a long and difficult road to recovery, enduring not only the surgeries but also 19 blood transfusions and battling multiple infections during his time in the hospital. His grandfather shared the extent of his injuries, including the loss of function in his left arm and a noticeable limp from leg injuries.
The crash that changed their lives forever occurred when the driver, Hailey Zenk, then 17 years old, lost control of the vehicle while speeding at 81mph in a 35mph zone. The collision with a tree resulted in the tragic deaths of William Flickinger, 18, Emily McNees, 17, and Kaeden Tyler, 15.
Trevor Bogert miraculously survived a horrific crash that claimed the lives of three of his friends in February 2023 in Lincoln County, Missouri
He had 11 surgeries, 19 blood transfusions and several different infections while in the hospital, his grandfather revealed. Additionally, he still does not have the use of his left arm or hand and walks with a limp now, due to the injuries to his leg
Zenk’s lenient sentence – which saw her enter an Alford Plea and serve just 120 days behind bars despite facing multiple charges that could have put her in prison for decades – sparked outrage in the community.
The new details of Trevor’s recovery emerge as Zenk, 19, faces court again after allegedly tampering with her alcohol monitor twice since her early release from jail.
Zenk was freed on bail again last week despite allegedly violating a key part of the probation she was slapped with after the February 2023 crash in Lincoln County, Missouri.
She was back in court earlier this week after the court was alerted to two instances of her tampering with her SCRAM alcohol monitor, and after a judge denied raising her bail she was released on a $20,000 cash-only bond.
She will be back in court in February and may see her lenient probation order upgraded to prison time after tampering with the device.
Douglas Meyer, the stepfather of Kaeden Tyler, condemned Zenk’s behavior and said he hopes to see Zenk imprisoned.
‘Every single time, there’s bad news. It’s like opening up another wound,’ he told FirstAlert4 .
Hailey Zenk, 19, twice tampered with her alcohol monitor after she was released on probation earlier this year related to a tragic February 2023 drunk driving crash that killed three of her friends
Emily McNee (pictured) was killed in the horror crash in the early hours of the morning, and Zenk was found to have a combination of drugs and alcohol in her system
William Fleckinger (left) and Kaeden Tyler (right) also tragically lost their lives in the crash
‘Maybe wrongs are being righted, and hopefully, the judge will do the right thing and see through all the mistakes she’s made since the beginning.’
Upon her release under new conditions this week, Zenk was placed on house arrest and is only allowed to leave for treatment, church or if her probation officer makes an exception.
The crash that killed Fleckinger, Tyler and McNees unfolded shortly before 4:30am Sunday February 5, 2023, when cops said Zenk was speeding at 81mph in a 35mph zone.
Zenk, who was 17 at the time, lost control of the vehicle and crashed it into a tree, killing her three friends. Zenk and another passenger survived the crash but were hospitalized.
The teen driver was found to have a combination of drugs and alcohol in her system at the time of the crash.
However, the leniency shown to Zenk sparked outrage from the community, as she was allowed to enter an Alford Plea – where she pleaded no contest and did not admit guilt, but acknowledged there was enough evidence to convict her.
Families of the victims condemned the lenient sentence Zenk received earlier this year after she served just 120 days in jail, ‘one month for every one of those kids she killed’
Cops said Zenk was speeding at 81mph in a 35mph zone when she crashed
She was initially sentenced to 10 years for driving while intoxicated resulting in two or more deaths, seven years for DWI leading to serious injury and seven years each for three counts of involuntary manslaughter, but the judge decided to impose a suspended execution of sentence.
This meant Zenk served just 120 days in St. Charles County jail before she was released on probation – angering the victims’ families.
‘We are greatly disappointed and outraged. It’s just unthinkable that they think 120 days is going to teach her anything because not even killing three people did,’ Kaeden Tyler’s aunt Jordan Reichert said at the time.
