Montana man gets lighter sentence, avoids prison time in fatal Williams County crash

WILLISTON, N.D. (KUMV) – A Choteau, Montana man pleaded guilty Monday in Northwestern District Court in connection with his role in a crash that killed a man in Williams County.

Donnie Wurz was charged with involuntary manslaughter in 2023 after the truck he was driving struck and killed Randall Moe in 2022. Court documents said Wurz failed to yield and exceeded his allotted driving time.

As part of a plea agreement accepted by District Court Judge Chas Neff Jr., the charge was amended to driving without a restraining order, a Class A misdemeanor.

Deputy District Attorney Nathan Madden said the decision was due to several unfortunate circumstances, including issues with the coroner’s office, an accident reconstruction technician not completing a report before the Williams County road was paved and no records were available on any of the vehicles.

Kevin Chapman, Wurz’s attorney, called the incident a tragic accident and said that without access to the evidence, Wurz could not properly defend himself.

Wurz also spoke out, repeatedly repeating that it was an accident and that he did not see Moe.

Judge Neff told the parties that if the evidence had not been lost, the situation might have been different and added that Wurz had “received a gift” in connection with the lesser charge.

As part of the plea agreement, Wurz will serve 360 ​​days of probation and pay a $1,300 fine.

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