Drunk driver receives eight years in prison

COEUR d'ALENE - A drunk driver who smashed into multiple vehicles during a high-speed chase on Interstate 90 on April 20 was sentenced Friday for felony DUI and eluding police.

Glenn M. McNutt, 50, was given eight years in prison, with five years of it mandatory, for the DUI. He'll be eligible for parole for the remaining three years.

Previous to this incident, McNutt had been arrested for DUI four times.

On the felony eluding a police officer charge, McNutt was given five years in prison, with two years fixed, according to the judgment and sentence document filed Tuesday in First District Court.

McNutt pleaded guilty this summer to the two felony charges. Several other charges from the incident were dismissed.

First District Court Judge Rich Christensen ordered that the sentences be served concurrently, which means they'll overlap.

Christensen also ordered that McNutt's driver's license be suspended for one year immediately, and for two additional years when he is released from incarceration.

McNutt, however, may not serve much time in prison as Christensen has decided to retain jurisdiction.

Sometimes called a "rider," retained jurisdiction means McNutt will receive less than a year of treatment, or "programming," while in the custody of the Idaho Department of Correction.

Christensen didn't make a recommendation as to what type of programming McNutt should receive.

When McNutt completes his treatment, McNutt will be brought back to court for review.

Prosecutors and McNutt's attorney can at that time make recommendations to Christensen, who then decides whether to place McNutt on probation or send him to prison to serve his sentence.

In the April 20 incident, McNutt's vehicle collided with multiple other vehicles and witnesses said he hit speeds of 90 mph before the police chase came to a halt near the 15th Street exit in Coeur d'Alene.

Authorities said he appeared so intoxicated that officers had to smash a car window and unlock the door because McNutt was unresponsive to their commands to exit the vehicle. Nobody was injured in the incident.

"He could hardly walk, let alone stand," an officer's report said of McNutt's condition at the time. "He had difficulty holding his head up."

His 2006 Kia passenger car was unable to run at that point after smashing into the other vehicles and some guard rails.

Officers said that when McNutt looked at them during the arrest, it was as though he couldn't comprehend who they were.