A Missouri truck driver originally charged with murder has been allowed to plead guilty to automobile homicide and aggravated assault in a collision that killed a state transportation worker.
John David Young, 36, of Lebanon, Mo., entered the pleas in 7th District Court Monday. He faces a possible sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a $20,000 fine. Sentencing was set for Dec. 8.Young was accused in the death of Harvey Johnson, 34, of Cedar City.
Johnson died when Young rammed his truck, forcing it over an embankment.
Young showed no sign of stopping when he reached a construction site north of Price in September 1992, prosecutors said. He hit a car, which skidded 100 feet, and nearly ran over a flagger. Then he hit a Utah Department of Transportation truck before turning his tractor-trailer rig around and plowing into Johnson's pickup.
Young told 7th District Judge Bryce K. Bryner he had driven his load of used cars from Orlando, Fla., with almost no sleep.
Young was allowed to plead to lesser charges because he had no prior record, drugs were not involved and lack of sleep had affected his mental state, said Carbon County Attorney Gene Strate.