Wichita man who hit parked cars, killing cousin in passenger seat, gets prison sentence
A Wichita driver responsible for the fatal injuries his cousin suffered in a July 2019 single-vehicle wreck has been sentenced to two years, eight months in prison.
Eric Lane Turner Jr., 23, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, leaving the scene of an accident and driving while suspended in the July 5, 2019, crash that led to 21-year-old Leon Turner’s death. He was sentenced Feb. 19 by Sedgwick County District Court Judge David Dahl, court records show.
At the time of the wreck, Turner was already on probation in an unrelated case. Police have said he drove a silver Pontiac G6 into two empty, parked cars near his home in the 2600 block of East Mossman, inadvertently injuring his cousin in the passenger seat. Leon Turner was in the hospital for two days before he was pronounced brain dead on July 7, 2019.
Prosecutors agreed to recommend the 32-month prison sentence for Turner on the involuntary manslaughter count, plus six months in jail on the other counts, to be served concurrently, or at the same time, court records show. The sentencing recommendations were made due in part to Turner’s young age and “the additional punishment he has already endured through his unintentional killing of a family member,” the records say.
Turner’s lawyer wrote in court filings arguing for leniency that Turner’s “relative youth and immaturity” led to the “thoughtless and reckless actions” that caused his cousin’s death.
