DNR finishes investigation into 2019 fatal boat crash on Mississippi River

LA CROSSE, Wis. (WEAU) - The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has finished its investigation of a fatal boat crash that happened in 2019 on the Mississippi River near La Crosse.

According to a release from the DNR, the investigation was concluded with a conviction following an Aug. 17, 2019 boat crash on Pool 8 of the Mississippi River near the French Slough and Black River.

41-year-old Scott Halvorson died two days after the crash. 56-year-old Keith Matush of Dane, was fined $1,000 plus court costs for negligent operation of a motor vehicle, a misdemeanor, on Nov. 2022 in La Crosse County Circuit Court, according to online court records.

Investigators with the La Crosse County Sheriff’s Office said that both boat operators were interviewed following the crash. Initially, investigators said that Halvorson’s jon boat cut in front of Matush’s bass boat, but after gathering evidence and reconstructing the crash scene, they determined that Matush’s boat was overtaking Halvorson’s jon boat and should have yielded.

“The evidence from the investigation proved the initial report was not actually what happened,” DNR Conservation Warden Matt Groppi said in a release.

Halvorson declined medical treatment at the scene and later went to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with several internal head injuries. Investigators found out Halvorson died on Aug. 19, two days after the crash.

Assisting the DNR with the investigation were the La Crosse County Sheriff’s Office, La Crosse Police Department, La Crosse Fire Department and Wisconsin State Patrol.