BENTONVILLE -- A Siloam Springs man was sentenced to seven years in prison after pleading guilty to driving while intoxicated in a crash that killed his stepson.
Michael Guest, 39, pleaded guilty Monday to manslaughter, endangering the welfare of a minor and driving while intoxicated.
Emergency responders found an overturned and submerged pickup in a pond about 10 p.m. Jan. 3, 2019, at U.S. 412 and East Main Street, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Guest was out of the pickup and bystanders told police officers a child was inside, according to the affidavit. Guest was in the water crying hysterically, but not trying to remove his stepson from the vehicle, according to the affidavit.
Emergency personnel turned the pickup on its side and removed the boy, according to court documents.
Tyler Levi Hammett, 11, was taken to Siloam Springs Regional Hospital and later to St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa, Okla., where he died, according to the affidavit.
Guest was taken to the Siloam Springs hospital, according to the affidavit. Sgt. Jed White smelled alcohol on Guest at the scene and overheard Guest telling a nurse he drank three or four alcoholic beverages, according to the affidavit.
Police did a portable breath test on Guest three hours after the collision, and it showed his blood alcohol content was 0.06, according to the affidavit.
Police say the vehicle didn't slow down before crashing into the pond's cinder blocks, according to the affidavit.
Benton County Circuit Judge Brad Karen accepted the plea agreement struck by Mark Lucas, Guest's attorney, and Bryan Sexton, deputy prosecutor.
Guest was sentenced to seven years in the Arkansas Department of Correction. He must abide by a suspended sentence agreement for 12 years after his release.
NW News on 02/12/2020