Stanwood man pleads guilty to fatal crash from 2022

Published 2:33 pm Thursday, January 15, 2026

EVERETT — A 47-year-old man pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide and hit-and-run charges Wednesday in Snohomish County Superior Court.

Joseph Checkeye pleaded guilty to two charges, one of which was reduced, more than three years after the Stanwood man fled the scene after driving over double the speed limit and fatally striking an elderly man.

During the evening of Nov. 13, 2022, Ronald Sailer, 85, turned left in his Nissan Rogue from 29th Avenue Northeast onto 140th Street Northeast, also known as Fire Trail Road, on the north end of the Tulalip Reservation, according to court documents. He later told his son he saw a vehicle approaching from a distance.

Checkeye then rear-ended Sailer with his Dodge Ram pickup, court documents said.

Around 8 p.m., a motorist called 911 to report the Nissan’s driver was trapped inside the vehicle and pleading for help. He appeared to be in an “immense amount of pain,” she reported.

Collision detectives later determined the Nissan had left the roadway after the impact, driven through a nearby fence, paralleled the road in the grass before veering left and coming to rest in the eastbound lane, court documents said.

Checkeye had already fled the scene, but a Snohomish County Sheriff’s deputy discovered his truck’s dislodged license plate and front grill at the crash site.

The deputy traced the license plate to Checkeye’s residence, where they discovered a truck with front-end damage and a missing front grill and license plate, court documents said. The truck’s hood was still warm, but there was no answer when the deputy knocked on the door.

First responders transported Sailer to Providence Regional Medical Center Everett, where hospital staff discovered his injuries were more severe than paramedics had thought. Sailer’s injuries rendered him quadriplegic, court documents said. He died two days later.

When detectives returned to Checkeye’s home a few days later, the truck was gone. Detectives learned Checkeye had taken the vehicle to a repair shop, court documents said. A shop employee reported that Checkeye had said he rear-ended a car, but they drove away without stopping.

Checkeye agreed to provide a written statement to detectives, court documents said. In the statement, he wrote Sailer had failed to stop when turning, leaving Checkeye only “a second to apply his brakes.” He reported he was going the speed limit, 35 mph. When he reportedly did not see the car after the collision, he drove home.

The day after the collision, he reported the incident to his insurance company. During the recorded call, he reportedly said, “It was lucky I didn’t kill anybody,” court documents said.

Crash data showed Checkeye’s truck was driving 85 mph seconds before the impact, court documents said. Upon applying his brakes, the car slowed to 47 mph at impact. Detectives believe these numbers were underreported due to the truck’s oversized tires.

Seconds before impact, the Nissan was moving at 1 mph, court documents said. From there, it gained speed until it reached 29 mph at impact.

Detectives determined that if Checkeye had been traveling the speed limit, he would have had enough distance to stop his truck before the collision.

Sailer was the president of the Sno-Isle Genealogical Society.

“Ron’s dedication, enthusiasm, and passion for genealogy and the Sno-Isle Genealogical Society was apparent to all who met him, and his presence will be sorely missed,” the society wrote after his death.

On Nov. 21, 2024, two years after the crash, prosecutors charged Checkeye with vehicular homicide in a reckless manner and hit-and-run fatality accident, court documents said.

At the plea hearing on Wednesday, prosecutors presented the amended charges, reducing Count 1 to vehicular homicide disregard for safety of others. Count 2 remained the same.

Aside from a 2018 reckless endangerment misdemeanor in Skagit County, Checkeye had no criminal history, according to court records.

On Wednesday, Checkeye pleaded guilty to both counts before Snohomish County Superior Judge Paul Thompson.

Per state sentencing guidelines, the standard sentence for this level of offense is 21 to 27 months imprisonment and 12 months community custody for Count 1. For Count 2, the standard sentence for this level of offense is 41 to 54 months imprisonment.

His sentencing is set for 1 p.m. March 17 before Snohomish County Superior Court Judge William Steffener.

Jenna Millikan: 425-339-3035; jenna.millikan@heraldnet.com; X: @JennaMillikan