Relief sought in case

SANDPOINT — A Bonner County man serving a 10-year prison for accidentally killing one pedestrian and seriously injuring another is seeking post-conviction relief.

Peter Franklin Goullette argues he received ineffective assistance from his defense counsel and was incorrectly charged with vehicular manslaughter at the felony level, according to a petition filed in 1st District Court on June 17.

The charges against Goullette stem from a June 2017 collision on McGhee Road which claimed the life of Katherine Stelzer and seriously injured her friend, Zualita Updike. The pair was walking along the road during a break from their jobs at Litehouse Foods.

Despite being charged with a felony and reckless driving, Goullette racked up a series of new criminal charges while awaiting trial. He was accused of aggravated assault for allegedly forcing his way into a Bonner County home and attacking its occupants with a baseball bat and committing witness tampering by trying to persuade the victims not to report the incident to authorities.

Judge Barbara Buchanan imposed the maximum sentence for vehicular manslaughter when he was sentenced in 2018, finding that Goullette had an opportunity to go on the straight and narrow, but squandered that opportunity by committing additional crimes.

Goullette argues that his misconduct in the manslaughter case did not rise to the felony level and maintains he should have been charged with involuntary manslaughter at the misdemeanor level. He also claims falsely that his counsel, Sandpoint attorney Michael Waldrup, did not lobby for a lesser sentence. Waldrup recommended a two- to five-year term, records show.

Goullette further alleges that Waldrup did not seek a reduced term after he was sentenced, which is allowed under Idaho’s criminal court rules.

Goullette, 25, is serving his sentence at the Idaho State Correctional Center in Kuna, according to the Idaho Department of Correction. He becomes eligible for parole in 2028.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.