CHEYENNE, Wyo. — A Cheyenne man has been sentenced to seven to 14 years in prison for a 2021 DUI homicide.
On Wednesday morning, Kyle Kozeal, 34, was sentenced in Laramie County District Court for aggravated homicide with a vehicle. Judge Thomas Campbell carried out Wednesday’s sentencing, and Thomas Szott served as Kozeal’s defense attorney, also recommending that Kozeal serve seven to 14 years in a defendant’s sentencing memorandum.
Kozeal pled guilty to the crime on Aug. 21, according to Laramie County court records. The maximum sentence for DUI aggravated homicide with a vehicle is 20 years and/or a $10,000 fine.
On Oct. 12, 2021, Kozeal was driving in Cheyenne while intoxicated and struck another vehicle, which resulted in the death of the driver, according to a probable cause affidavit. At 9:16 p.m., officers responded to a report of a serious injury at the intersection of Ridge Road and East Lincolnway. Footage from a gas station’s security camera shows that Kozeal was driving eastward on East Lincolnway much faster than the posted speed limit. A witness at the gas station stated they estimated Kozeal was traveling anywhere from 70 to 80 mph. The 34-year-old struck the rear of the victim’s vehicle, resulting in the driver’s death.
When officers arrived on scene, they found Kozeal lying unconscious across his vehicle’s driver-side and passenger-side seats. Officers could smell an odor of alcohol coming from Kozeal. When officers asked Kozeal how much he had to drink, the driver told them “way too much,” the affidavit states. Court records state Kozeal was previously arrested on DUI charges in 2013 and 2018.
More than a year later, an arrest warrant was issued on the vehicular homicide charge on Nov. 10, 2022. Kozeal made his initial appearance in Laramie County District Court a few days later on Nov. 14. He was released on bond, set at $20,000, the day after. His case was transferred to the county’s district court starting with his arraignment on Dec. 12, 2022.
