hit-and-run “never should have happened”

LISLE, Ill. — The family of a 21-year-old college student who was killed in a West Michigan hit-and-run crash last Saturday, are questioning why the person who did it was out on bail after being arrested for driving under the influence.

Police told the Gansberg family the driver who hit their daughter, Kaylee, was out on bail following a DUI arrest that happened the week prior.

According to police, the crash happened around 2:30 a.m. near the intersection of West Michigan Avenue and Howard Street, just a few hundred feet from Western Michigan University’s campus in Kalamazoo. After arriving on scene, Kaylee was taken to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries where she was later pronounced dead.

Police said they made contact with the 22-year-old driver shortly after they drove off and determined they were under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash. The driver was arrested on related charges.

“That should not have been allowed to happen,” said Keith Gansberg, Kaylee’s father. “That’s where I feel like our system failed … failed my family.”

As the Gansberg family awaits answers, they are helping keep Kaylee’s memory alive through pictures, memories and her artwork.

Kaylee was a senior at WMU majoring in Fine Arts with a focus in Photography.

“Her dream was to travel the world,” Keith Gansberg said. “See a number of big cities and take photographs of those cities.”

There will be a candlelight vigil in Kaylee’s honor Saturday at Lisle Community Park with funeral services taking place Sunday. A GoFundMe page has also been set up to help the family cover Kaylee’s tuition, medical and funeral expenses.