Utah Law Talk

John Hanson pleaded guilty to automobile homicide and will receive the maximum sentence of one to fifteen years. The decision came in the Utah 5th District Court on Monday, January 25 , 2010. Hanson pleaded guilty to driving drunk and striking and killing 52-year-old motorcyclist, Leland Lloyd. This fatal Utah auto accident happened near an Albertson’s on Telegraph Street in August of 2009 in St. George, Utah.

Hanson’s attorney said that Hanson has felt terrible remorse for his actions and since the Utah auto accident Hanson has taken steps to get help with his alcohol problem, reports thespectrum.com. Hanson wishes to continue his alcohol treatment.

In court, Hanson read a letter he wrote to the Lloyd family, who were present in the courtroom during the trail. He said he’s constantly tormented by what he has done. “Your lives and dreams have truly been shattered,” Hanson said. “I wish you could understand that I’m not a monster, but a loving caring person.” He continued, “But my pain must pale in comparison to what you are going through.”

After the verdict was given Judge Rand Beacham said, “Mr. Hanson has made serious strides (to improve) but the problem is he waited too long and he’s affected too many innocent lives.”

Utah Drunk Driving Statistics

Utah DUI law prohibits any person from operating a vehicle if he or she’s blood alcohol concentration is .08 or greater or the person is under the influence of alcohol or drugs that makes the person incapable of operating the car safely. Drunk driving sentences range from class B misdemeanors for first offenders to a third degree felony when the person has had a prior DUI conviction or the accident causes a fatality.

In 2008, data given by alcoholalert.com shows 275 total fatalities were alcohol related. In the United States, an estimated 11,773 people died in drunk driving crashes. That number constitutes 31.6% of the total number of traffic fatalities in the United States in 2008.

Ron Kramer is a Utah personal injury attorney with offices in Provo, Draper and Bountiful Utah.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 27th, 2010 at 7:11 pm and is filed under Drunk Driving, Utah car accident, Wrongful Death. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.