Driver pleads guilty to causing 2015 crash that killed cyclist

Published 1:30 am Thursday, April 13, 2017

EVERETT — An Everett man faces up to 8 1/2 years in prison after admitting Thursday he caused a crash that killed a cyclist near Silver Lake in 2015.

Garth White, 41, was thrown into the air and died on the road from head injuries. His brother, also on a bicycle, witnessed the crash. He told police he was nearly hit by Kerry Stark’s pickup truck before his brother was struck.

A witness followed Stark, who fled the crash. The defendant stayed in his heavily damaged pickup for about 10 minutes and then headed back toward the way he came.

He passed the crash scene and nearly struck an ambulance that was stopped with its emergency lights on. A police officer caught up with Stark around the 11200 block of 19th Avenue SE.

Blood tests revealed that Stark was under the influence of alcohol, marijuana, benzodiazepines, anti-depressants and sedatives. He tested at 8.8 nanograms of active THC per milliliter, nearly twice the legal limit for marijuana.

Stark, 59, pleaded guilty Thursday to vehicular homicide. He is scheduled to be sentenced next month.