Plea deal reached in January traffic crash fatalities
by Peter Jakey, Managing Editor
The 17-year-old Indian River youth, who is blamed for the January traffic crash that killed three Onaway area residents, will be tried as an adult, but avoid prison time.
The youth appeared in court Wednesday morning with defense attorney Joe Kwiatkowski, who was supposed to bring rebuttal witnesses to bring testimony to probate Judge Donald McLennan of the programs that would serve his client if the three counts of homicide/manslaughter with a vehicle were to be heard in 53rd Circuit Court?s Family Division.
Kwiatkowski and Presque Isle County prosecutor Rick Steiger appeared before McLennan to bring the details of a plea deal.
WHEN THE youth, who was 16 at the time of the accident, is brought up on formal charges in adult Circuit Court, he is expected to plea to three counts of negligent homicide and waive jurisdiction in juvenile court.
In return, the prosecutor will not argue to exceed the state?s sentencing guidelines. The deal will keep the young man from serving a substantial prison term, said Steiger. He may spend up to a year in the county jail.
Three members of the same family were killed in the crash on Hutchinson Highway January 26 when the youth, driving a full size Ford pickup truck smashed into the vehicle containing Deb Stuifbergen, 51, and he
HEARINGS IN recent weeks indicated that the young driver was on the wrong side of the road when he hit Nick Stuifbergen?s vehicle on the other side of a hill. The young driver also was portrayed as a careless driver, who forced an Onaway man and his mother to take evasive action when the youth passed them on State Street in downtown Onaway in a no pass zone.
Family members of the victims, including Deb?s husband Gary Stuifbergen, were in court for the hearing. Steiger said the family is ?happy he will be held accountable.?
The youth?s name will not be released until he is formally arraigned in Circuit Court.