Driver gets six months for crash that killed trooper

LEXINGTON, Mo. -- A man whose pickup crashed into a Missouri State Highway Patrol vehicle stopped along Interstate 70, killing a state trooper and seriously injuring the motorist he had pulled over, was sentenced Thursday to six months in jail.

Paul Daniel, 30, of New Hampton, pleaded guilty in October to four traffic misdemeanors -- failure to yield to an emergency vehicle, failure to operate in a single lane, having no valid commercial license and careless and imprudent driving.

The crash near Higginsville on May 22 killed trooper Michael Newton, 25, who was trapped inside the flaming wreckage. Michael Nolte of Leawood, Kan., who had been pulled over by Newton and was sitting in the patrol car with him, was pulled to safety by two motorists.

Daniel, who apologized repeatedly during the sentencing hearing in Lafayette County Circuit Court, was pulling a trailer with a one-ton pickup when he veered onto the shoulder and crashed into the Ford Crown Victoria squad car. Daniel said he wanted to pull over to stretch his knees, and that as he was getting ready to stop, he had leaned over to grab his sunglasses from the dashboard because he was being blinded by the rising sun.

Daniel, the last to testify Thursday, apologized profusely for the accident.

"I know there's no such thing as a do-over," he said. "Mr. Nolte, Mrs. Newton -- you're in my thoughts every day."