Florida trucker given probation in Nebraska double fatality

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Florida man was sentenced Friday to 90 days of house arrest and two years of probation for a crash that killed a Nebraska man and his 7-year-old son last year.
Yorkwind Crawford, 50, of North Miami Beach, Florida, was sentenced for two misdemeanor charges for the crash that killed Creighton University assistant professor Mark Kaipust, 41, and his son, Taylor,
Investigators said Crawford was driving a semi-trailer truck on Sept. 4 when he plowed into a line of vehicles that had slowed on Interstate 80 in Lincoln as fans exited to attend a Nebraska football game.
Five other people were injured in crashes that involved eight vehicles.
Crawford pleaded guilty in February to two counts of misdemeanor motor vehicle homicide.
He was originally charged with two felonies but the charges were reduced when the Lancaster County prosecutor said he couldn’t prove underlying factors required for felony convictions.
Prosecutors said Crawford was not speeding, wasn’t using his phone and wasn’t under the influence of any substance before the crash. They said he was briefly distracted and didn’t realize the line of vehicles had slowed down.