Ariz. Man Allegedly Yanked Steering Wheel from Girlfriend During Argument, Causing Crash that Killed Girl, 11

Mar. 15, 2025

Photo: GoFundMe

Adrian Ballesteros, 28, has been charged with one count of manslaughter and five counts of endangerment, according to police in El Mirage, Ariz.

It wasn’t immediately clear if he entered a plea to the charges.

On the evening of July 6, investigators allege Ballesteros caused the deadly head-on collision that killed Arianna Gannon and injured her two sisters, 14-year-old Angelina and 16-year-old Anneliese. The person driving the girls — fellow church member Maggie Suggs, 53 — was also hurt.

The pickup truck and the car carrying the Gannon sisters collided. Arianna was ejected from the vehicle, according to police.

She was pronounced dead on the scene while her sisters and Suggs were transported to a hospital in stable condition, per the release.

Police said Ballesteros and his girlfriend — who both only had minor injuries, despite their truck flipping — remained at the scene of the accident.

GoFundMe

Pastor Barry Sappington told the outlet the congregation is still processing the loss.

“It’s like we can’t wrap our brains around it,” said Sappington, according to the station. “How do you account for that loss? And the loss, it was so unnecessary.”

He added, “My flesh just wants to cry out. Like not just anger — a moment of such disappointment that we’re in that kind of life now, where rage and anger in a domestic situation can cause the loss of a precious 11-year-old. That to me is injustice.”

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According to an update on the family’sGoFundMepage aimed at covering Arianna’s funeral expenses and the family’s medical bills, the Gannons are reminiscing about Arianna’s life through photos and videos.

“It’s painful. It’s healing. And yet it’s a wound that will leave a permanent scar on us all,” the family said on the fundraising site.

“We are looking at sweet Angelina and Anneliese… filled with gratitude for their safety and return, knowing this could’ve been exponentially … infinitely… more grievous… And yet, in the moments of relief and laughter… there’s a whisper of guilt for feeling any relief, because the loss we’re experiencing is so great.”

Ballesteros has been assigned a public defender, whose name wasn’t immediately available.

He is due back in court Friday.

source: people.com