Appeals Court reverses judge’s ruling in Hastings crash case

HASTINGS, Neb. (KSNB) - The Nebraska Court of Appeals has reversed a local judge’s decision in the case of a teenager involved in a fatal car crash in 2025.

Tanner Graf, 18, of Hastings, had requested that his case be transferred to juvenile court. District Judge Morgan Farquhar denied that request in June.

Court records show Graf then appealed his case to the appeals court, which reversed Farquhar’s decision last month and sent the case back to Adams County District Court.

Graf is charged with two counts of second-degree assault, exhibition driving and reckless driving.

Graf was involved in a serious car crash in May 2025 on Second St. in Hastings.

A woman involved in the crash, Jelena Bozic Skinner, 47, of Hastings, suffered critical head injuries. Skinner died on July 12, 2026.

Adams County court records show that Graf has requested a bond review and that he no longer be required to wear a tracker. A hearing on his request is scheduled Oct. 21, 2026.

Graf is also charged with first-degree sexual assault in Adams County. The details of that case were sealed by the court, but the charging documents indicate the assault happened Sept. 22, 2025, and the victim was 14 at the time.

It was not clear from court documents whether the question of transfer to juvenile court would be revisited.

Two other teenagers were involved in the May 2025 crash:

• Gregory Stroot, 19, of Hastings, was charged with two counts of felony second-degree assault, as well as exhibition driving and reckless driving, both misdemeanors. In July, Stroot pleaded no contest and was convicted on the driving charges. The assault charges were dropped in a plea bargain. Stroot will be sentenced Sept. 22.
• Beckett Shafer, 18, of Hastings, had his case transferred to juvenile court. Charges against him were dropped in March in a plea agreement. The charges were dismissed without prejudice, a legal term which means they could be refiled if Shafer does not live up to the conditions of the plea agreement. The terms of the plea agreement were not published in the court records.

A GoFundMe page has been created to support the Bozic family.

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