Surprise Plea in Motorcyclist Death
By John Davis • May 23rd, 2007 • Category: Northwest Cycle News HeadlinesA man accused of causing a drunken crash west of Naches that killed a motorcyclist entered a surprise plea today.
Scott Edwin Bradford, 40, pleaded guilty in Yakima County Superior Court to a charge of vehicular homicide. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to recommend a bottom-of-the-range sentence of 31 months, or just over 2 and 1/2 years in prison.
A sentencing date was set for June 4. In the meantime, Bradford remains in jail on $50,000 bail.
Bradford went on trial Monday for his role in a crash on Aug. 6 on State Route 410 that claimed the life of 30-year-old Zacharey Cox of the Seattle suburb of Redmond.
Cox was killed when the motorcycle he was riding, a high-performance Italian-made Ducati, crashed into the side of Bradford’s car on an S-curve near Cliffdell, about 27 miles west of Naches.
Prosecutors alleged that Bradford caused the crash by making an illegal U-turn in a no-passing zone. They also accused Bradford of having a blood-alcohol level of .018, more than double the threshold for drunken driving.
The plea came on Day Two of Bradford’s trial, not counting three days spent picking a jury last week.
The crash happened while Cox, a carpenter, was heading home after visiting friends in Bend, Ore., where he took part in a Ducati Club run.
Bradford, who is from Puyallup, Pierce County apparently was camping in the area. Neither he nor several teenage passengers in his car were injured.
John Davis is the owner, editor and publisher of Northwest Cycle Report. John also owns and writes for MotoSkagit.com and is the administrator for the Washington 120 State Park Tour. In addition to his own sites, John is a contributing author for MotorcycleLife.com and Motorcyclebloggers.com. He lives in Mount Vernon, WA and rides a candy-red Honda VTX1800 Retro.
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