The co-founder of a Kansas City brewery has been charged with manslaughter more than four years after a car crash with a train that claimed the lives of three Johnson County men, including his brother-in-law.
Chancie Adams, who founded Martin City Brewing Company alongside Matt Moore, faces three counts of involuntary manslaughter for his role in the deaths of Kevin Corbin, Brent Moroney and Troy Hamlin.
The charges also indicate that Adams, 45, was allegedly under the influence of alcohol or drugs during the crash.
Corbin, 40, of Stillwell; Moroney, 37, of Overland Park; and Hamlin, 40, of Overland Park, were killed Oct. 10, 2020, when their car crashed into a Union Pacific train in southern Overland Park.
At the time, all three men were riding in a Jeep allegedly driven by Adams, who was Corbin’s brother-in-law and a friend of Moroney and Hamlin. The foursome were driving down a gravel road intersecting with Union Pacific train tracks in southern Overland Park, and had crossed the train tracks around 6:37 p.m. to check out a patch of land Moroney was considering buying.
While attempting to cross back over the tracks toward the main road, Adams allegedly ran the Jeep into a northbound Union Pacific train. Adams was injured in the crash but survived.
Corbin, Moroney and Hamlin are survived by seven young children, collectively. In a joint statement released Wednesday, their widows Jo Anna Corbin, Jessica Moroney and Christine Hamlin said they were heartened to see criminal charges filed to hold Adams accountable for the deaths of their husbands.
“While we continue to feel devastated by our immense loss, we feel a sense of encouragement that justice will prevail and accountability will be taken by Chancie Adams for his actions resulting in the deaths of our beloved husbands,” the three widows wrote Wednesday. “We continue to appreciate the way the community has respected our privacy and supported our families through this trauma and grief.”
The widows’ attorney was not immediately available for comment Wednesday.
In February 2023, Jo Anna Corbin testified to Kansas legislators that Adams had had a blood alcohol level nearly twice the legal limit during the crash, and that Adams hit the train because he had run through a stop sign at the railroad crossing.
The gravel road on which the three men died is owned by Barbara and Robert Kenney of Leawood. The couple allegedly had entered into an agreement with Union Pacific Railroad that they could own private land intersecting the railroad tracks as long as they kept the gate locked on the private road leading to the railroad crossing.
In May 2021, Jo Anna Corbin, Jessica Moroney and Christine Hamlin sued the Kenneys, alleging that the couple had failed to lock the gate and clear the vegetation around the crossing. The lawsuit also named Chancie Adams as a defendant, as well as Chancie’s wife Amanda Adams, who was Kevin’s sister.
The widows’ lawsuit argued that Adams and their husbands had not been trespassing on the private road at the time of the crash because they had “implied consent to enter the property” with the gate unlocked.
Chancie Adams and Matt Moore opened Martin City Brewing in Martin City in 2014. The company has since expanded to six brewpubs serving primarily pizza and beer, along with a brewery distributing cans of Martin City beer throughout the Kansas City metro.
As of December 2024, Adams is not listed as a co-owner on the brewery’s website.
Martin City Brewing Company was not immediately available for comment Thursday.
Kevin Corbin, who was also a partner in Martin City Brewing Company, was an active family man and an avid Kansas City sports fan, relatives wrote in his obituary.
“His passion for technology and his ability to solve any problem was unmatched,” Corbin’s obituary read. “Coding, family campouts, going fishing, trips to the beach, mowing the lawn with the kids and sailing on the Rum Runner were just some of the greatest moments for Kevin, JoAnna and their families.”
Brenton “Brent” Moroney’s family remembers him as a deeply devoted husband and father. A proud alumnus of Kansas State University, Moroney was silly and playful with his children even as he was serious about his work, relatives wrote.
No matter the occasion, big or small, [Brent] made sure each moment was celebrated,” Moroney’s obituary read. “He left big shoes to fill but was unknowingly preparing everyone with the life skills to carry on.”
Also a devoted father, Troy Hamlin enjoyed coaching his children’s sports team, as well as collecting and restoring classic cars, traveling and following Texas A&M sports. Relatives described his curiosity and zest for life as “insatiable.”
“[Troy’s] family was the focal center of his universe,” Hamlin’s obituary read. “…His love, his character, and his presence will carry on in our hearts forever.”
