A Harvey County jury on Thursday convicted Emporia truck driver J.B. Miser, 64, of two counts of vehicular homicide, one count of aggravated battery, and one count of reckless driving, according to information from The Newton Kansan.
Miser had been charged as a result of a traffic accident on May 10, 2004, on U.S. Highway 50 in a work zone in Harvey County. Brandi Billbe and Lori Leeders were killed in the accident and Billbe’s 16-year-old daughter suffered debilitating injuries.
Miser’s daughter-in-law, Emporia city prosecutor Laura Miser, told The Kansan that the family would evaluate its options and decide whether to appeal the verdict.
Vehicular homicide, a misdemeanor, carries a maximum one-year jail sentence and $2,500 fine. Aggravated battery, a felony, carries a prison sentence of 31 months to 136 months.
Harvey County Attorney David Yoder said that he was unaware of any prior convictions on Miser’s record. He could be eligible for probation on the aggravated battery charge, The Kansan reported. Sentencing is scheduled for 10 a.m. on June 20.
Miser was driving a loaded semi-trailer truck when he struck the rear of Billbe’s conversion van in a construction zone near the Harvey-Marion county line. The prosecution alleged that Miser had not taken medication for diabetes and high blood pressure the day of the crash and had not heeded construction signs.
A Kansas Department of Transportation worker at the scene testified that Miser told him he had fallen asleep.
The accident originally was believed to have occurred in Marion County. Charges were filed there, then re-filed in Harvey County District Court after it was discovered the accident happened within the Harvey County line. That confusion caused a delay in prosecution of the case.