A 27-year-old Emery County man pleaded guilty to automobile homicide Tuesday, admitting in Seventh District Court that he caused the head-on collision that killed a 68-year-old Price motorcyclist last July.
Jeremy Scott Hunt had been accused of causing the fatal wreck while driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and with a lesser charge of driving on a revoked or suspended license. Hunt entered his pleas before Judge Douglas B. Thomas at the Emery County Justice Center in Castle Dale.
Under questioning by the judge, he said he understood that in pleading guilty to the automobile homicide charge, a third-degree felony, he faced up to five years at the Utah State Prison and a $5,000 fine. Hunt also understood that driving on a revoked license, a Class C misdemeanor, carries a penalty of up to three months in the Emery County Jail and a fine of $750.
Judge Thomas also advised the defendant that the guilty plea could affect any civil suits for restitution. Hunt, accompanied by his lawyer David M. Allred, acknowledged that he was aware of this.
The July 20 collision killed motorcyclist Glenn Silvis about 10 miles south of Price in Carbon County. The impact occurred while a witness who was calling to report a silver Mazda driving erratically was still on the phone with emergency services dispatch.
Silvis, who received a Purple Heart for injuries he received in Vietnam, had been a long-time resident of Price and was active in the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Judge Thomas set sentencing for April 5.
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