Virginia Driver Pleads Guilty To Vehicular Manslaughter, Drunk Driving

Posted on Jul 30, 2011

A Virginia man pleaded guilty to three serious charges after an Easter Sunday crash in Utica that left one man dead. New York news sources say that William Daniels, of Hopewell, Virginia, will be sentenced for aggravated vehicular homicide, aggravated vehicular assault, and aggravated driving while intoxicated in relation to the fatal crash.

The accident took place in April on a Sunday evening at the intersection of South Street and Webster Avenue. Daniels, who was driving a white van, drove through a stop sign and into a sedan, killing the driver, 50-year-old Nurko Bakaran, and critically injuring his wife, 47-year-old Dula Bakaran. Police later determined through blood alcohol tests and their investigation of the accident scene that Daniels was drunk and speeding.

Daniels faced a 16-count grand jury indictment in June, in which he was faced with a range of charges, including illegal possession of marijuana and reckless driving.

The man, who was traveling for business at the time of the accident, will be sentenced for his crimes in late September. The judge presiding over the case stated that he had received a number of letters of support from the friends and family of Daniels in Virginia.