A 20-year-old man pleaded guilty Friday to causing a fatal wreck while running from police in a stolen pickup near Nisqually.
Cody J. Coffinger was convicted of first-degree manslaughter, attempting to elude police, vehicular homicide and failure to remain at the scene of a car wreck resulting in death.
Pierce County prosecutors said Coffinger was at the wheel of a stolen pickup that a Washington State Patrol trooper spotted speeding and driving recklessly on Interstate 5 on Sept. 28, 2011. Coffinger later lost control of truck and crashed. His passenger, William Barnes Jr., 35, was thrown out of the pickup and died.
Coffinger is to be sentenced next Friday.
adam.lynn@ thenewstribune.com
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