By JONATHAN ZWEYGARDT
Hays Post
A Plainville man pleaded no contest Wednesday to a pair of felony charges related to a November 2016 Ellis County crash that left one person dead and another injured.
Matthew Miller, 35, pleaded no contest to involuntary manslaughter/driving under the influence and aggravated battery/driving under the influence in Ellis Country District Court on Wednesday for his role in the 2016 accident on Highway 183 north of Hays.
According to the crash report from the Kansas Highway Patrol, Miller was driving a Buick LaSabre south on Highway 183, 13 miles north of Hays when the car crossed left of center, colliding head-on with a Dodge Stratus driven by Jon Olson, Hays.
A passenger in the Buick, Kay Crumble, 36, Plainville, was killed in the accident. Olson and Miller both sustained injuries. Olson suffered a broken arm and Miller suffered injuries that required surgery to his hip, pelvis and ankle.
According to the probable cause affidavit, a number of witnesses reported seeing the Buick cross the centerline and make no attempt to stop or avoid the collision.
The affidavit also states that when Highway Patrol Officer Robert Taylor talked with Matthew Miller after the accident, Miller stated he only remembered starting to drift into the other lane before the collision.
Taylor also spoke with Miller’s sister, Stephanie Dick, and, according to the affidavit, she told Taylor she believed Miller caused the accident on purpose.
According to the affidavit, Miller told Dick that he, “wanted to go see our mom and I f***ed up Kay in the process.” Dick told Taylor their mother had passed away about five years ago.
A forensic mapper with the Kansas Bureau of Investigation also concluded that the “Buick left no marks indicating it was trying to stay in its own lane,” according to the affidavit.
Three hours after the accident occurred, Miller had blood drawn and his blood alcohol limit was .08 percent, according to the affidavit.
Miller was arrested Jan. 1, 2017, at his home in Plainville.
Under the plea agreement, Miller is expected to serve between 50 months and 82 months in prison. Miller will serve 50 months on the involuntary manslaughter charge and it will be left up to the sentencing judge to determine whether Miller will serve the 32 months on the aggravated battery charge consecutively or concurrently.
Miller was on probation for a felony possession of a controlled substance charge out of Clay County, Mo., at the time of the accident. This will fall under special sentencing guidelines of a felony committed while on felony probation.
Court services will conduct a pre-sentence agreement to determine Miller’s criminal history, and sentencing will be set at a later date.