Butte man pleads guilty in fatal crash

BUTTE (AP) – A 19-year-old Butte man has pleaded guilty to negligent homicide in the Halloween 2013 crash that killed a passenger.

Cody John Richards entered his plea Thursday during a hearing before District Judge Kurt Krueger.

Defense attorney Greg Jackson said Richards had been drinking and was unable to control his vehicle as he tried to negotiate a curve on icy roads. The Montana Highway Patrol found Richards was driving too fast for road conditions when his vehicle went off a county road and down a steep embankment, killing 19-year-old Kiel Podgorski.

A sentencing date has not been set. Negligent homicide carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.