Corbin man pleads guilty to 2016 fatal accident

CORBIN, Ky. (WTVQ) – It’s a 20-year sentence for a Corbin man who pleaded guilty to causing a fatal accident in 2016.

The Sentinel Echo newspaper says 35-year-old Eric James Cassidy pleaded guilty to murder, driving a motor vehicle under the influence of intoxicants and second-degree persistent felony offender in exchange for the sentence.

His jury trial was scheduled to begin on Wednesday and he could have faced a 20 to 50 year sentence or life imprisonment, according to the newspaper.

Cassidy was driving a Ford Explorer on Ky. 229 when he crossed the centerline and hit another car head-on. The impact sent the car over an embankment, killing 47-year-old Sherry King, of Barbourville.