Man sentenced to 16 years for DUI accident in Spanaway that killed 1, injured 3

TACOMA -- A 31-year-old man was sentenced to 16 years in prison Friday for a DUI accident in Spanaway in March that killed the father of a family in an SUV and injured the victim's wife and two daughters.

Matthew James Haygood, of Roy, pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide and three counts of vehicular assault.

The Pierce County prosecutor's office said Haygood was driving his neighbor’s oversized pickup truck on March 7, 2015, when he rear-ended a vehicle in Spanaway. Witnesses said Haygood was swerving and crossing the centerline prior to the crash. Haygood sped away from the scene.

Ten minutes later, Haygood crossed the centerline of SR 507 near East Gate Road and collided head-on with an SUV carrying a family of four. The father, who was driving, died at the scene.

The victim's wife, who was in the front seat, suffered broken legs and arms, and substantial abdominal and head injuries, including the loss of an eye. Their 12-year-old daughter, who was trapped in the backseat behind her father, underwent emergency surgery to repair severe internal injuries. The other daughter escaped serious injury.

Haygood hid in the woods for four hours. When he returned to the scene, he said he had been “wandering around the woods for hours calling for help.”

The prosecutor's office said Haygood told officers that he borrowed the truck from a neighbor so he could pick up some wood pallets. He then went to a friend’s house and drank before getting behind the wheel. Toxicology reports show Haygood’s blood alcohol content was twice the legal limit.