Why some Amish would rather go to jail than make simple update to a tradition that has been blamed for killing dozens

On Sunday, July 14, at approximately 6:00 p.m., a 2006 Ford F250 collided with the back of an Amish carriage in Cumberland County, Virginia, killing an eight-year-old girl who was inside.

Just over an hour later, a black 2020 Ford Escape crashed into the back of an Amish buggy in Lowville, New York, killing a 17-year-old boy.

The two tragic accidents come amid a dramatic increase in fatalities involving Amish vehicles, as their slow speeds and poor visibility create chaos on the roads.

Yet some stubborn Anabaptist communities refuse to comply with new laws intended to improve public safety, even though their own children are being killed as a result.

Ardent traditionalists say they will not install electric lights in their strollers as it goes against their religious beliefs, sparking anger among locals.

One cult in Ohio has even said they would rather go to jail than compromise their principles.

The confrontation has divided opinions, with some defending the Amish but preferring to point the finger at careless motorists.

Preliminary investigations into last month’s crashes indeed show that the Amish are not to blame.

However, there is growing evidence that horse-drawn carriages are involved in an alarming number of road accidents.

According to the Virginia Mercury, there were 24 collisions involving a horse and buggy in Virginia between 2016 and 2022, resulting in four deaths and at least 65 injuries.

A 2019 study by the Ohio Department of Transportation found that there were 723 crashes involving strollers in the state between 2009 and 2019, with 350 resulting in injuries and 17 resulting in fatalities.

According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol, there were 100 buggy crashes in 2023 alone, and that number is expected to be surpassed by 2024.

To address this problem, the state passed a law in 2022 that requires Amish buggies and other animal-drawn vehicles to display flashing yellow lights when traveling on public roads.

The bill was supported by more progressive members of the Amish community.

“A few of my friends were killed and many were injured, including myself and my parents,” said a supporting witness.

‘That’s not it, the English [a term the Amish use to refer to non-Amish] have to live with that feeling of having hit someone. I am so sorry. Most of this could have been prevented, including my accident, by one simple step, [a] strobe light.’

However, the ultra-conservative Swartzentruber Amish in Ashland County resist the change.

Shortly after the law passed, dashcam footage obtained by FOX 8 showed two Amish men being pulled over by an officer for violating the law.

When asked if they were aware of the flashing light requirement, one of the men told the deputy, “We’ve heard about it. I’d like to wear it, but my bishop won’t let me.”

Lt. Brad Bishop said at the time that elders and bishops were outraged by the new law, saying that using electric lights was “not what their ancestors did.”

In January 2023, dozens of Swartzentrubers were issued fines of up to $150 each for violating the law. The magistrate who handed them out tried to impress upon them the seriousness of the matter, emphasizing that the law was in place “for the safety of yourself and your family, as well as the safety of the motoring public.”

One by one, however, they refused to pay, citing religious reasons. They said their traditions required them to keep their buggies “plain and simple” and that a yellow flashing light was too “worldly.”

Several people indicated that they would rather go to jail than pay.

The case came before a municipal judge, who ruled that an Ohio Supreme Court case prohibits him from locking up suspects who refuse to pay fines for non-jailable offenses.

Instead, he tried to reason with them.

“Are you going to pay your fines?” Judge John Good asked one of the Amish members, Ashland Source reports.

“No, not at this time,” was the answer.

“Are you ever going to pay them?” Good asked back.

‘Not that I know.’

“Would you be able to pay them if you had the income or the financial means?” Good continued.

“Yes, but I can’t afford them for religious reasons.”

Other exchanges followed a similar pattern. Annoyed, Good asked the suspects what he should do.

Most of them said they didn’t know, but one suspect, William Zook, had a suggestion.

“Pray,” he said.

“It’s the best advice I’ve received today, Mr. Zook,” Good replied.

During the hearings, the judge expressed dismay that the Amish should be punished for adhering to their religious beliefs.

But in February he rejected objections from some Swartzentrubers that the law was unconstitutional, concluding that the law was justified in the name of public safety.

“I’ve tried to be patient, but now it’s reached the point where you’re giving the court the cold shoulder and I have to decide whether I’m going to let this go or whether I’m going to do everything I can to affect the fines and fees, as I would in any other case involving any other citizen in Ashland County,” Good said.

He seized their property, which would pay interest until they paid off the debts.

Not that much has changed.

The Swartzentrubers have shown little willingness to pay. Ohio State Highway Patrol Sergeant Bridget Matt told DailyMail.com that nothing had changed on the ground, and traditionalists still refuse to put lights on their buggies.

But Ashland County isn’t alone in trouble.

In Charlotte County, Virginia, Amish elders have warned that younger members are refusing to follow their advice to install lights on strollers because they “think they are invincible,” the Farmville Herald reported.

Wayne Wengers, an Amish man from Wayne County, Ohio, who represents his community on a state public safety steering committee, said about 90 percent of Amish were already using lights before the state mandated it.

He told DailyMail.com that it was only a minority who resisted, but admitted that it had caused ‘tensions’ with local people.

Erik Wesner, who runs the blog AmishAmerica.com, pointed out that many Amish buggy accidents, including those this past weekend in Virginia and New York, occur in more progressive communities where the buggies have lights.

This suggests that the focus on the problem is wrong, he added.

Others went further and even suggested a conspiracy against the Amish.

Cory Anderson, a scholar at Pennsylvania State University and the Amish and Plain Anabaptist Studies Association, wrote in an op-ed published last year in the Columbus Dispatch that the stroller light law is completely unsubstantiated and was passed under questionable circumstances.

Anderson, who wrote a master’s thesis on crash scenarios between motor vehicles and buggies, said the law feigned support from the Amish. For example, it included a letter that appeared to be from the Amish community, but contained only the names of people who were not Amish.

He added that the implementation of the battery-powered flashing lights on Amish vehicles raises debates about possible religious targeting, as members of strict Amish denominations object to the lights for religious reasons.

When contacted by DailyMail.com, he gave a cryptic response.

“I probably know more about what’s going on than anyone else and I have to be careful with what I know,” he said. “The situation is sensitive enough at the moment.”