Fort Riley soldier drove drunk and killed Clearwater police officer. He’ll go to prison
A U.S. Army soldier convicted in a drunken driving crash that killed an off-duty Clearwater police officer nearly a year ago has been ordered to serve three years, seven months in prison.
Gage Kaiser, 20, of Mulvane, pleaded guilty on Dec. 17 to one count of involuntary manslaughter while driving under the influence in the March 16, 2024, death of 26-year-old Scott Hollingsworth. Authorities have said Hollingsworth was on his way home after work when his 2014 Audi car was hit by a 2013 GMC Sierra truck that didn’t yield at a stop sign.
Law enforcement officials have said the truck struck the driver’s side of Hollingsworth’s car, causing it to roll and land on its top around 3:20 a.m. Hollingsworth was killed on impact at U.S. 81 and 119th Street South near Mulvane.
Hollingsworth, a husband and father described by loved ones as a “gentle giant,” was headed southbound on U.S. 81 when the collision occurred. He had just celebrated a year on the Clearwater Police Department, The Eagle reported previously.
Kaiser was driving the GMC westbound on 119th. He told law enforcement he had beers at a friend’s house in Wichita, drove to Arkansas City to drop off a sibling and then to Peck, where he picked up three passengers — but claimed “he did not feel under the influence of alcohol and thought he could safely operate” the truck, a probable cause affidavit says.
His passengers had to be treated at a hospital for injuries ranging from minor wounds to broken bones, according to the affidavit.
Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office spokesman Dan Dillon said Judge Christopher Magana followed the plea agreement when he sentenced Kaiser on Monday to 43 months in prison. The judge also ordered Kaiser to pay $2,962 in restitution, Dillon said.
Prosecutors agreed to dismiss two aggravated battery charges when he entered the guilty plea in December, court records show.
Kaiser was stationed at Fort Riley at the time of the crash. He is currently in custody at the Sedgwick County Jail, according to an online log of jail inmates.
