DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. – A Monument man found guilty of killing an Army veteran while driving drunk was sentenced Thursday for the crime, but will avoid prison, according to a spokesperson with the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office.
Daniel Swecker, 47, was sentenced to 180 days in jail and four years of probation in the death of Nelson Marvin Canada.
Swecker was driving drunk on I-25 in Castle Rock on Feb. 25, 2012, when he hit and killed 24-year-old Canada, 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Vikki Migoya said in a press release.
Canada, who was a passenger in the vehicle, believed the driver to be intoxicated, so he managed to convince the driver to stop so he could drive instead.
Swecker reportedly hit Canada, who was in the right lane before walking away from the scene, leaving Canada’s body in the roadway, Migoya said.
Two years later, on May 27, 2014, a jury found Swecker guilty of vehicular homicide DUI and leaving the scene of a deadly accident. Two months later, on July 11, a judge sentenced Swecker to six years in prison but ruled he could stay out on bond while he appealed his conviction, the press release states.
His motion to have his sentence reconsidered was granted and a hearing was held on January of this year.
On Thursday, a judge sentenced Swecker to 90 days in jail on each count of which he was found guilty, to be served consecutively. Migoya said in the statement Swecker must report to jail on March 5.
He was also sentenced to four years of probation.
“The original sentence is suspended, pending successful completion of probation,” the release states.