Shiloh Skalka’s parents have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the man who fatally struck their 16-year-old daughter while she was riding an e-bike in Burlington.

The suit, filed in Chittenden Superior Court on Monday, accuses Douglas Knapp of negligence in the July 16 crash that killed Skalka, a rising junior at Burlington High School. 

Knapp, 79, pleaded not guilty last month to negligent operation with death resulting. The misdemeanor charge carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison and a $3,000 fine. A local folk artist who paints under the name Dug Nap, he could not be reached for comment Thursday morning.

It is unclear whether he has an attorney representing him in the civil case. A public defender is representing him in the criminal case. He is due back in court October 27. 

The lawsuit, filed by attorney Brooks McArthur, was first reported by VTDigger.org. It recounts many of the details outlined in the criminal complaint.

It describes how Skalka was riding her bike home after a shift at Starbucks when she reached the T-intersection of Locust and Pine streets. Skalka pressed a button to activate crosswalk lights, waited three seconds, and entered the crosswalk on her bike. A few seconds later, Knapp ran her over with his black minivan. 

Police estimate Knapp was driving a few miles per hour faster than Pine Street’s 25 mph speed limit and say he had ample time to stop before hitting Skalka. Knapp told responding officers that he did not remember seeing the flashing lights and did not see Skalka until he had struck her. 

“Defendant Knapp continued to drive his vehicle over Shiloh’s body and south of the crash before finally coming to a stop,” the lawsuit says. 

Skalka was wearing a helmet at the time but suffered severe injuries to her chest and abdomen, the suit says. She was alert when emergency responders arrived, but her condition deteriorated on the way to the hospital. There, she received multiple blood transfusions and underwent an exploratory surgery, during which she experienced cardiac arrest, the lawsuit says. 

She died around 5:45 p.m., about four hours after the crash.

The lawsuit says efforts to save Skalka’s life resulted in medical costs exceeding $260,000.

Her mother, Susan, was on an airplane that was about to take off for Boston from Minnesota when the hospital called to explain what happened, according to the lawsuit. Susan called her husband, Christian, who went to the hospital with Skalka’s twin brother. Susan rented a car upon landing in Boston but did not arrive in Burlington until close to 6 a.m. the next morning, about 12 hours after her daughter had died. 

“The Skalka family continues to grieve daily, suffer daily, and are engaging in intensive therapy as a result of Shiloh’s passing,” the lawsuit says. 

A memorial fund established through the Vermont Community Foundation in Skalka’s honor has raised more than $110,000 to date. The family says the fund will be used to support local organizations and community programs that align with her values.

“Through this fund we will share Shiloh’s light, warmth, and profound appreciation for the beauty of the world with others, so that her life and memory will continue to inspire and uplift,” the family wrote.

Colin Flanders is a staff writer at Seven Days, covering health care, cops and courts. He has won three first-place awards from the Association of Alternative Newsmedia, including Best News Story for “Vermont’s Relapse,” a portrait of the state’s worsening drug crisis. He has also written or cowritten a dozen stories that have earned top honors from the New England Newspaper & Press Association. He graduated from Saint Michael’s College with a degree in journalism and started his career...