Man Must Annually Put Flowers on Grave of Person He Killed
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BEAUMONT, Tex. — A judge has ordered a man convicted of involuntary manslaughter to place flowers every year on the grave of the man he struck and killed on a freeway.
District Judge Leonard Giblin on Wednesday added that provision to the sentence of eight years of probation given to James Van Dyke, who pleaded guilty in the Aug. 19, 1989, death of Paul Mitchell, 54.
The judge ordered Van Dyke to place the flowers on the grave on the anniversary of Mitchell’s death. Van Dyke’s car hit Mitchell as he stood near his pickup truck on the shoulder of Interstate 10 in this southeastern Texas city.
A plea bargain agreement allowed Van Dyke to plead guilty in exchange for probation.
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