HAWKEYE, IOWA – A female baby was taken from a Northern Iowa man after he crashed his GMC Envoy into a semi, and the child was given to the department of human services while he is investigated.
On September 19, 2025, at approximately 12:06 PM, the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call of a car vs semi accident on Highway 18 near W Avenue, approximately five miles west of Hawkeye.
After further investigation, it was determined that 48-year-old Shane Michael Booth of Waterloo, was operating a White 2021 Kenworth Semi Truck and a White 2025 MH Eby Trailer. Booth was attempting to turn south bound from the westbound lane on Highway 18, when 46-year-old Bradley Dean Chandler of Sumner, Iowa, attempted to drive a Silver 2004 GMC Envoy XL around Booth, on the south side of the semi and trailer. Chandler struck the back part of the trailer first and then collided with Booth’s semi.
No injuries were reported.
The Semi and Trailer sustained approximately $10,000 in functional damages. The GMC sustained approximately $5000 in disabling damages.
Chandler was charged with Failure to yield upon left turn and Failure to provide proof financial liability-accident related. The Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Hawkeye Fire Department, Hawkeye First Responders, and Gundersen Ambulance.
Additionally, the Department of Health and Human Services was contacted reference a suspicious 9-month old female baby in Chandler’s vehicle. The baby was taken into the Sheriff’s Office custody until DHS arrived.
This incident remains under investigation.
(TOP PHOTO of accident via sheriff’s office.)
Wondering why it’s significant that the infant is female?