How far would you go to protect your sibling? In Sept. 2023, Samantha Peterson was driving in rural Minnesota when her car collided with an Amish buggy, seriously injuring two children, and killing two others and the horse. So, why did Samanatha’s twin sister, Sarah Peterson, take the blame?

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Court documents state that after the accident, Samantha called 911. She also called her identical twin, Sarah, who rushed to the scene and told the police she was behind the wheel. The deputy Sarah spoke with was recording the conversation. That recording also caught Samantha and Sarah talking amongst themselves. “There’s no way they would ever know the difference between the two of us, so they can’t tell,” Sarah said, unaware anyone could hear them, The New York Times reported.

Samantha Peterson’s criminal record

Samantha Peterson had a criminal record for driving under the influence and giving a false name at the scene of a crime, and she was reportedly high on meth when the Amish buggy crash happened. Sarah arrived first, before the authorities, and the sisters agreed she would take the blame to save her sister jail time, and because they looked the same and even swapped clothes, no one could tell the difference, according to CBS News.

The problem was that Samantha texted and called other people from the crash scene. Both sisters worked at a local grocery store, and after the accident, Samantha called into work and said she caused the wreck. Meanwhile, Samantha called one other person and admitted she made Sarah take the fall. Samantha’s phone data also indicates she searched topics like, “What happens if you get in an accident with an Amish buggy and kill two people,” according to The Times.

“As the days continued beyond that first day, where the crash was reported, inconsistencies started to appear in both sisters’ stories and in the evidence that the deputies uncovered. Later, it was determined through a series of search warrants, interviews, analysis of different data that, in fact, Samantha Peterson, Sarah’s twin sister, was driving that vehicle,” Fillmore County Sheriff John DeGeorge said, referring to the investigation.

Samantha Peterson has now been charged

More than a year after the fatal Amish buggy accident, the truth came out: Samantha Peterson was charged with 21 counts related to the wreck. Drug tests indicated she was under the influence of THC, methamphetamine, and amphetamine at the time of the accident, USA Today reported. Fox9.com says Sarah Peterson was also charged with taking responsibility for criminal acts and aiding an offender. As of this report, both sisters were in custody, and were expected to appear in court in March and April 2024.

The AP reported that 7-year-old Wilma Miller and 11-year-old Irma Miller died in the accident, while their 9 and 13-year-old siblings were seriously injured. The four children were headed to school when their buggy was rear-ended.