Logan man pleads guilty to automobile homicide in April crash

LOGAN — A 26-year-old Logan man has pleaded guilty to causing a crash last April that killed a 23-year-old Smithfield man and injured two others.

Bradley Thompkins appeared in 1st District Court Monday morning. He pleaded guilty to automobile homicide, a second-degree felony, and two counts of driving under the influence of alcohol, a third-degree felony. He was scheduled to be sentenced October 22.

On the night of April 16, Thompkins was driving a 1995 Chevrolet truck southbound on 100 West in Logan. At the same time, a white Toyota SUV was at the corner of 400 South 100 West, attempting to go east through the intersection. As it proceeded, it was broadsided by the truck.

During Monday’s court appearance, state attorney Spencer Walsh said Thompkins was driving 80 mph when the crash occurred. The speed limit in that area is 25 mph. He also explained that the defendant had been consuming alcohol heavily before the crash, and later was found to have a blood alcohol level of .18.

Michael Hunsaker was one of the occupants in the Toyota SUV. The 23-year-old Smithfield man was thrown from the vehicle and died at the scene. His mother, Lisa Hunsaker, also suffered a broken neck and a 14-year-old girl sustained a broken pelvis.

As officers arrived on the scene, bystanders reported two other occupants in the truck had run from the area. They later located 26-year-old Jerry L. Gooding, hiding a block away from the crash. He was reportedly combative and uncooperative. The second runner, a 17-year-old male juvenile, was located hours later at his residence.

Court records show prosecutors later charged Gooding with obstructing justice, a class A misdemeanor. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.


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