MISHAWAKA, Ind.--- Kara Beaty spent years fighting false charges and was wrongfully convicted at just 18 years old for a June 2020 crash she did not cause. Now, at 24, she is suing the investigators who, she says, conspired against her and violated her constitutional rights.

The Notre Dame Exoneration Justice Clinic, which took on her case, proved the only "evidence" presented at Beaty's trial was fabricated, and a video that shows a motorcycle driver actually caused the crash was withheld. That video revealed the motorcyclist was driving about 100 miles per hour before the crash.

Beaty was exonerated in March 2025.

The motorcycle driver, severely injured, lost a leg and ultimately succumbed to pneumonia about a year and a half after the crash.

The defendants include Timothy Spencer, commander of the St. Joseph County Fatal Alcohol Crash Team (FACT), and four other investigators, plus the city of Mishawaka and St. Joseph County.

The lawsuit can be read below: