Missoula Man Pleads Guilty In Fatal SUV Crash

A Missoula man has pleaded guilty to two counts of negligent homicide for the deaths of his passengers after his sport utility vehicle went off a cliff and landed upside down in the Flathead River in April 2010.

25-year-old Shaine Steffens admitted drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana before the crash and told investigators he took a turn too fast and went off a 30-foot embankment. Autopsies found that Drew Taylor and Joshua Clairmont drowned.

Steffens suffered a dislocated shoulder and spent the night in the river. He crawled up to the road and waved down a motorist the following day.

A plea agreement signed in District Court in Polson on Wednesday recommends Steffens be sentenced to 20 years with the Department of Corrections with 15 suspended.

Associated Press