Orem man sentenced to 1 day in jail after crash that claimed life 3-year-old Provo girl

Rick Davis Winder. Photo Courtesy: Utah County Jail

PROVO, Utah, Dec. 6, 2018 (Gephardt Daily) — An Orem man has been sentenced to one day in jail, along with community service and probation, in connection with a four-vehicle crash that killed a 3-year-old girl in Provo in April.

Rick Davis Winder, 38, pleaded guilty to negligent homicide in October after the death of Chelsea Parkinson.

Winder was sentenced in Provo’s 4th District Court Thursday to 400 hours of community service and two years probation. He was also sentenced to one day in jail, but with credit for time served, he will not spend any additional time behind bars.

The little girl’s family said during the sentencing they forgive Winder and do not want to see him imprisoned.

Provo Police said the accident happened April 15 at about 4:48 p.m. at the intersection of University Avenue and 3700 North. Three cars on southbound University Avenue were stopped at the light and were waiting in the left-turn lane to go east on 3700 North.

A fourth vehicle — a Pleasant Grove Utility truck driven by Winder-the — hit the third car, causing a chain-reaction crash.

The occupants of that third car, a red station wagon, were Chelsea, her sister and her parents. Chelsea’s 15-month-old sister was initially in critical condition, and their parents were “moderately injured.” The occupants of the other vehicles were either uninjured or sustained minor injuries.

“After reviewing video surveillance of the accident and speaking with witnesses, it was found that the truck that Rick Winder was driving had drifted from the left southbound lane on University Avenue before it crashed into three vehicles that were stopped in the left-turn lane at 3700 North,” a news release at the time said. “This resulted in the death of Chelsea Parkinson and caused serious injuries to her family members.”

Winder initially told police he was distracted prior to the crash because he kissed the hand of his girlfriend, who was also in the truck.

The investigation showed that Winder tested positive for oxycodone during a urine test shortly after the accident.

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