Plea agreement anticipated in DUI crash case

SANDPOINT — A plea agreement could resolve a case against a Laclede man accused of drunkenly crashing his car into a van full of people at a high rate of speed earlier this summer.

No resolution was announced during John Douglas Kuhn’s pretrial hearing in 1st District Court on Friday, although his counsel, Deputy Public Defender Susie Jensen, indicated that a plea offer is anticipated, according to court documents.

Kuhn, 65, is charged with two counts of aggravated driving under the influence in connection with the June 22 collision on U.S. Highway 2. He pleaded not guilty to the felony offenses.

Idaho State Police said Kuhn was driving eastbound when he crashed his 2013 Honda Accord in the rear of a Chevrolet Express van on the western outskirts of Priest River. A Bonner County Sheriff’s deputy clocked Kuhn’s vehicle at 96 mph seconds before the collision, according to an ISP probable cause affidavit said.

The collision propelled the full-size van off the highway, where it struck an embankment several times and overturned, the affidavit said.

All five passengers in the van were taken to local hospitals for treatment.

One passenger, Kiersten Sprick, a 21-year-old from Sammamish, Wash., suffered a cervical vertebrae fracture, a pinched brain artery, fractured sternum and other injuries. Another passenger was ejected from the vehicle, although her injuries were not disclosed in court documents.

Kuhn also was injured in the crash and taken to Kootenai Health for treatment. Upon his release from the hospital three days after the crash, he was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence.

Kuhn admitted drinking alcohol when he was interviewed immediately after the crash. Blood was drawn from Kuhn, although test results have not been posted in the court file.

Kuhn is free on $10,000 bail while the case is pending. Conditions of pretrial release forbid him from driving or consuming alcohol. He is required to submit to ethyl glucuronide testing twice a week to monitor compliance with the latter condition.

Outside of several speeding tickets, Kuhn has no prior criminal record in Idaho, according to the state Supreme Court Data Repository.