Kansas man sentenced to 10 years for crash that killed officer, pedestrian and K-9 last February
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A man who sped through a red light in Kansas City and crashed into a patrol car has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of an officer and a bystander. Jerron Lightfoot, a 20-year-old from Tonganoxie, Kansas, said he was “truly sorry and never intended to hurt anyone” before he was sentenced Wednesday. The Feb. 15, 2023, crash killed Officer James Muhlbauer, who was 42, Jesse Eckes, who was 52, and Muhlbauer’s police dog, Champ. Police determined that Lightfoot sped up to nearly 90 mph just two seconds before hitting Muhlbauer’s car on the driver’s side. The impact sent the car crashing into Eckes.