[Source: AP]

A driver accused of causing a crash that killed Treat Williams knew the actor and considered him a friend but denied wrongdoing and said charges are not warranted.

Ryan Koss, the managing creative director of the Dorset Theatre Festival in Vermont, said he knew Williams for years as a member of the tight-knit community, as well as a fellow theater member. He said he was devastated by Williams’ death and offered his “sincerest condolences” to the actor’s family. “I considered him a friend,” Koss said.

Koss, 35, of Dorset, issued a statement Friday evening, three days after being issued a citation for grossly negligent operation causing death. He was ordered to appear in court in September to be formally charged.

A Vermont State Police investigation concluded Koss’ vehicle pulled in front of Williams’ motorcycle on June 12 in Dorset, but Koss said he’s “confident the facts will show I obeyed all relevant traffic laws, and the state’s charges are unwarranted.”

Williams, 71, of Manchester Center, was pronounced dead at Albany Medical Center in New York.

Richard Treat Williams starred in the TV series “Everwood” and the movie “Hair.” He appeared in more than 120 TV and film roles, including the movies “The Eagle Has Landed,” “Prince of the City” and “Once Upon a Time in America.”