Connie Fauzae, 57, Esperanza Lara, 9, Jose Lara, 10, killed, and Christopher J. Cox, 45, charged in collision on Highway 20 near Jackson, Nebraska

The Dakota County Sheriff’s Office was called to mile marker 420 on Highway 20 around 3:40 a.m. Thursday, for a single vehicle accident with injuries, according to a Dakota County Nebraska Sheriff’s Office statement. Deputies found the vehicle over an embankment and in a creek on the northeast side of the highway.

The driver, 45-year-old Christopher Cox of Council Bluffs, told police that he swerved to avoid hitting a deer. He has been charged with two counts of motor vehicle homicide and one count of driving without a license.