Hutch man sentenced for deadly 2016 crash

April 24--A Reno County judge sentenced a Hutchinson man to 32 months in prison on Friday for a May 2016 crash that killed the driver of the other vehicle.

Judge Trish Rose sentenced Everett W. Hardy, who is in his mid 20s, for involuntary manslaughter in the death of John B. "Jack" Johnson, 80, of Hutchinson.

As part of his guilty plea agreement, the state dropped a charge for not having insurance.

Based on Kansas sentencing guidelines, Rose had discretion on either probation or prison time.

The judge heard statements from Johnson's daughter, Sheri Seachris, and son, Rick Johnson, before ordering the prison sentence with 24 months post release supervision, court related fees and restitution for funeral costs.

A Kansas Highway Patrol trooper who analyzed a data recorder recovered from Hardy's vehicle testified at a previous hearing that Hardy accelerated seconds before reaching the intersection at 14th Avenue and Poplar Street. The trooper said it was in an apparent attempt to beat oncoming traffic.

Hardy ran the stop sign and slammed into the passenger side of Johnson's pickup at about 45 mph. The speed limit was 30 mph.

The pickup then veered off and hit a utility pole with the back end resting on top of the rear of Hardy's Pontiac.

Johnson died in a Wichita hospital 23 days after the May 12, 2016, accident.

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