Kansas man convicted after alleged rape victim dies in crash

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A 35-year-old Kansas man has been convicted of murder after a woman died in a traffic crash while fleeing from what prosecutors alleged was a rape.

A Wyandotte County jury on Wednesday found Orlando Taylor guilty of first-degree murder in the August 2017 death of 39-year-old Shannon Keithley of Kansas City, Kansas, and two counts of aggravated robbery. He was acquitted of rape.

Investigators say Keithley died when the car she was driving hit a concrete pillar near her home while she was calling 911.

Officers arrested Taylor after finding him hiding under the deck of Keithley’s house. A knife was found in the driveway.

Taylor was initially charged with rape and burglary, but Keithley’s family and friends pushed prosecutors to charge him with murder as well.