Drunken driver sent to prison after fatal Blackfoot crash
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BLACKFOOT — A drunken driver responsible for the death of a 92-year-old man has been sent to prison.
Dillon Gibson, of Blackfoot, was sentenced before District Judge Bruce Pickett in Bingham County on Tuesday.
Gibson admitted he drove drunk before crashing his car through the home of William K. Hong, owner of Hong’s Chinese Take-Out on West Judicial in Blackfoot. Hong was inside the house on Parkway Drive and Lilac Street when the crash happened. The crash started a fire in the home, which police say claimed Hong’s life.
The car went through the garage and came to a stop in a neighbor’s yard.
Gibson tried to leave the scene on foot, but he was later discovered by police and arrested.
Gibson was originally charged with felony charges of vehicular manslaughter and leaving the scene of an accident. On Tuesday, Gibson was sentenced for vehicular manslaughter and as part of a plea agreement, the leaving the scene of an accident charge was dismissed.
Pickett sentenced Gibson to a unified prison term of 15 years. Three of those years are fixed and 12 are indeterminate. After Gibson completes the first three years it will be up to the pardons and parole commission to either release him or have him serve the remainder of his prison sentence.
A restitution hearing will be held at a later date. Currently, the Bingham County Prosecutor’s Office estimates restitution at more than half a million dollars.