Idaho driver charged in U.S. 20 traffic death of ‘devoted’ husband, father

BOISE (Idaho Statesman) – A year after a local paramedic, father and husband died in a crash along U.S. Highway 20, the 23-year-old Idaho driver involved in the accident has been charged.

In January 2025, Eleazar Puente Perez was driving a blue 2005 Toyota Tundra westbound on U.S. 20 when an ice patch made him lose control of his vehicle as he passed a semi and “unsafely” crossed back into the eastbound lane, crashing head-on into Kody Hansen’s red 2004 Toyota Prius, according to a probable cause affidavit obtained by the Idaho Statesman.

Puente Perez was traveling faster than the highway’s posted speed limit of 65 mph, the affidavit said. Hansen died at the scene.

Puente Perez was charged by the Canyon County Prosecutor’s Office with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter in late November. If convicted he could face up to one year in a local county jail and a $2,000 fine. His attorney, Michael Jacques, entered a plea of not guilty to the charge on behalf of his client, according to court filings.

The charge was first reported by KTVB.

Hansen, 33, who was wearing his seat belt, succumbed to his injuries right after the crash, according to Idaho State Police. He was on his way home after work and less than a mile away from his Parma residence when the crash occurred, according to a GoFundMe written by his sister, Taetyn Terry.

His family described him as “devoted” to his wife and three daughters, and to serving the community as an Ada County paramedic for over a decade, the GoFundMe said. Hansen had a “zest for life” and enjoyed hunting, fishing, playing the banjo or spending time with his dogs in his free time, according to the fundraiser.

“Kody was also known for his playful spirit and love of jokes and pranks, always bringing smiles and laughter to those around him,” Terry wrote in the GoFundMe post.