Tuesday, March 28, 2000
Trucker guilty in deaths, could get up to 20 years
BY DAN HORN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Clayton Kuehn faces a possible sentence of 20 years in prison for an August wreck that killed four people. It was the truck driver's first serious accident.
Mr. Kuehn was convicted Monday on four counts of involuntary manslaughter for causing a fatal collision on Aug. 5 between his truck and a van filled with children.
The verdict means the 40-year-old truck driver will face a sentence of up to five years for each fatality.
“We feel a prison sentence is appropriate in this case,” said Hamilton County Prosecutor Mike Allen. “We definitely will be recommending a sentence.”
The final call will be made by Common Pleas Judge Melba Marsh.
The judge's decision, expected in a few weeks, will address the most difficult and emotional issue in the case: How much should someone be punished for something that everyone agrees was an accident?
Prosecutors focused on that issue throughout the trial, arguing that Mr. Kuehn, of Cadiz, Ky., was reckless that day on Interstate 275. They said he was driving too fast — about 45 mph — to control his truck in heavy rush hour traffic.
Because he failed to main tain an assured clear distance, prosecutors said, Mr. Kuehn caused the deaths of four passengers in the van.
And that, they said, made him guilty of involuntary manslaughter.
But in his testimony, Mr. Kuehn told jurors he did his best to control his truck. He said he was distracted for a moment and then looked up to see the van's brake lights.
He said he tried to stop, but his brakes locked up. Seconds later, his truck reduced the van to twisted metal.
The victims — Kenneth Sanders, 36; Whitney Sanders, 11; Oshanna Upton, 16; and Bethany Hayes, 11 — either died at the scene or hours later at a hospital. The church group from Knoxville, Tenn., was on a trip to Paramount's Kings Island.
Defense attorneys James and Edward Perry argued that the collision was an accident, not a crime.
But under the law at the time of the crash, it can be both.
The law allowed prosecutors to seek involuntary manslaughter charges if a misdemeanor offense resulted in a death. The law was changed in December, making it impossible for prosecutors to seek the same charges today.
Under the new law, Mr. Kuehn would have faced a maximum sentence of only a few years.
Mr. Allen said the change should not affect Mr. Kuehn's sentence. “We feel he was properly charged, and obviously the jury agreed,” he said.
Relatives of the victims said the jury reached the right verdict, but they would not say whether they favor a prison sentence.
“I feel he lost control of his truck,” said Dexter McCauley, who lost his brother-in-law, Mr. Sanders. “I couldn't see how the jury could come back with any other verdict.”
Throughout his trial, prosecutors called Mr. Kuehn the “Grim Reaper,” which is the name he used on the CB radio.
But Mr. Kuehn's lawyers described him as a hard-working family man with a wife and three children. After the verdict, Mr. Kuehn held hands and spoke quietly to several relatives.
He was silent as the verdict was read and did not comment after leaving court. He remains free on $20,000 bond pending his sentence date of May 5.
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