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Kiah Duggins, a Harvard graduate, former Miss Kansas contestant, and attorney, has been identified as one of the victims of the deadly collision between a commercial plane and an Army helicopter near Washington D.C, per the New York Post.
On Wednesday (January 29), Duggins was flying into Washington D.C. from Wichita, Kansas as she was "preparing to be a law professor at Howard University in the fall,” her former pageant director, Larry Strong, wrote on social media.
“It is with heavy heart that the Miss Augusta and Miss Butler County organization just learned that Kiah Duggins Miss Butler County 2014 [and] 2015 was a passenger in the plane that crashed last evening in Washington DC,” Strong said. “Keep the rest of the family in your thoughts and prayers at this difficult time.”
At the time of the collision, Duggins, who Strong noted was a top 10 finalist at the Miss Kansas Pageant in 2014 and 2015, was working as a civil rights attorney with the non-profit Civil Rights Corps, who “litigate[d] on behalf of movements challenging unconstitutional policing and money bail practices in Tennessee, Texas, and Washington, D.C.,” according to her profile on the organization’s website.
Duggins earned a law degree from Harvard University and her bachelor's degree from Wichita State University.
In a post on Facebook, former Sedgwick County Commissioner Lacey Cruse said Duggins was “a brave and beautiful soul, a light in the fight for civil rights.”
“Her loss is heartbreaking, not only for her family and friends but for everyone who believes in justice and equality,” she wrote. “May her work, her message, and her spirit continue to inspire and create change. Gone too soon but never forgotten.”
Wednesday's collision involved an American Airlines plane holding 60 passengers and four crew members and an Army helicopter with three people aboard. There were no survivors of the deadly crash, leaving 67 people dead. As of Thursday (January 30) night, at least 40 bodies had been recovered from the Potomac River.
Other identified victims include flight attendants Danasia Elder and Ian Epstein, Samuel Lilley, the first officer on board American Airlines Flight 5342, and passenger Wendy Shaffer. According to the Skating Club of Boston, a married pair of skating champions, two young skaters, and two parents were also killed in the plane crash.
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