A dusting of snow covered the tire tracks that veered off the stretch of dirt road, and frosted yellow roses in a basket of flowers tied to a tree. Attached to the basket Monday was a photo of 16-year-old Kayla Miller, who was killed there a day earlier when the Toyota Camry she was riding in hit two oak trees in the 500 block of Musselman Road. Miller was a front-seat passenger in the car and was pronounced dead at the scene of the 2:30am crash in West Manheim Township. An autopsy will be performed today. Three other teens inside the car, all 17 and from Hanover, were injured, said Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Patrick Gebhart. The male driver was listed in critical condition Monday afternoon at York Hospital, he said. In addition to the driver, the male rear-seat passenger was airlifted to York Hospital but has been released. The female rear-seat passenger was treated for minor injuries at Hanover Hospital and was released later Sunday morning, Gebhart said. He declined to release the names of the other three passengers because they are juveniles. Gebhart said police are still investigating the crash, but speed appears to be a factor. Less than a minute before the crash, the car fled from a West Manheim Township Police Officer who spotted the car backed into a wooded area off the stretch of dirt road, Gebhart said. "From what I understand, none of the families were aware the children were out and about," he said. As soon as a cloud of dust cleared, the officer went to follow the vehicle and saw it had hit two trees after failing to negotiate a curve. Gebhart said no one was wearing a seat belt. "We can't stress that enough," he said. The car had been towed to the state police barracks in Loganville, where it is being examined further. Gebhart said troopers are consulting with the York County District Attorney's Office to determine if, or what, charges will be filed. Kayla was a 10th-grader at New Oxford High School, where she transferred at the end of last year. She had previously attended schools in the South Western School District, where she was enrolled since kindergarten, said South Western High School Principal Walt Graves. Graves said two of the other three teens involved in the crash are students at South Western; the other teen had attended the high school but withdrew. Kayla's death is the latest in a history of fatal crashes involving New Oxford students, said New Oxford High Principal Michael O'Brein. "We have been unfortunate and have had several in the last few years," O'Brien said. "Even if it's only one child, it's one too many." Kayla's family could not be reached for comment. O'Brien said he always saw Kayla in the cafeteria at lunchtime. "She was very personable but a quiet kid, always said hello,"O'Brien said. He said she was well-behaved. Kayla's MySpace.com profile says she loved to hang out with her friends and do daring things. Several of her friends on her site have posted pictures of Kayla on their profiles, along with messages like "R.I.P. Kayla Lynn Miller" and "I will remember and love you forever. I miss you."

Kayla Miller

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