After he drunkenly caused a head-on crash on U.S. Highway 14A, Wade McMillin said he was deeply ashamed and decided to make substantial changes to his life.

Between the May 2024 collision and McMillin’s sentencing in Park County District Court last week, the 39-year-old Powell resident underwent 2,250 random breath tests at his own expense, completed intensive outpatient treatment and stopped drinking alcohol.

“In the last 637 days I have put into action everything in my power to regain the trust and faith people had in me,” McMillin said.

During the three-plus-hour court hearing, the prosecution contended that the seriousness of the case still merited a two- to three-year prison sentence, and the couple in the other vehicle supported that recommendation. However, McMillin’s many supporters said they didn’t believe incarceration was necessary, with his defense attorney arguing his response to the incident shows he’s committed to moving forward in sobriety.

District Court Judge Bill Simpson called it a tough decision, but ultimately opted to impose five years of supervised probation on the felony count of driving while under the influence causing serious bodily injury. Simpson said he believed McMillin has “a tremendous amount to offer” — if he stays clean and sober.

“Do you promise and commit to me that you will forgo alcohol, not use alcohol ever again, that you will abstain, because you know the pain it’s caused you, your family and the victims?” Simpson asked during the Feb. 17 proceeding. “Are you willing to make that commitment here before God, the court and all involved in this courtroom?”

“Yes, your honor,” McMillin said.

“And do you swear?” the judge pressed.

“I swear, your honor,” he said.

An alcohol-driven collision

Ahead of the crash, McMillin had been using alcohol as a way to cope with the aftermath of an abusive relationship, according to statements made in court. After receiving more bad news on May 20, 2024, McMillin reportedly went to a Cody bar, drank a significant amount of vodka and then tried to drive back to Powell.

“My biggest regret — besides negatively affecting someone else’s life and putting someone else in harm's way — is thinking alcohol was the answer to numbing my feelings, frustrations and emotions over a personal experience I was dealing with poorly at the time,” McMillin said in court last week. “It was a poor excuse and even poorer decision that affected [the man] and his wife and something they never deserved.”

McMillin was crossing Corbett Bridge that afternoon when he and his 2022 Toyota Corolla crossed into the opposite lane and collided with the westbound Powell couple. The impact to the couple’s Ford F-150 was severe enough that it ripped off the front driver’s side wheel.

While no severe injuries were reported, the man and woman later went to the hospital with pain in their foot and chest, respectively, and both vehicles were totaled.

McMillin appeared “very impaired,” the Wyoming Highway Patrol reported, and a breath test administered about an hour later pegged his blood alcohol content at 0.38%. That’s approaching five times the legal limit for driving.

“I’ll be frank with you: Many people I’ve seen with that high [a level] are dead,” Simpson remarked last week.

Deputy Park County Prosecuting Attorney Larry Eichele also noted the high alcohol level, citing it in his argument for prison time.

“For somebody to get to this point, a 0.38, 0.39[%], this is not the first time, your honor,” Eichele said, “and it was such a breach of public trust that I believe that a prison sentence is warranted in this case as a deterrent effect.”

The couple didn’t attend last week’s hearing. Park County Victim/Witness Coordinator Michelle Horn relayed on their behalf that “they prefer prison time, but it’s up to you, judge.”

A candidate for probation

The state probation and parole agent who prepared a presentence report dubbed McMillin a danger to the community and an inappropriate candidate for probation. However, defense attorney Sarah Miles said that finding “couldn’t be further from the truth.” 

“I would submit to the court that of many of the criminal defendants, thousands, probably, that I’ve had in the last 17 years of my career, Mr. McMillan is probably at the top of the list of a person that is an appropriate candidate for community supervision,” Miles said.

She noted multiple inaccuracies within the probation agent’s report, including a statement that the crash occurred in “Cheyenne” and references to a “risk assessment” that the department never did in this case; Miles wondered aloud if portions had been copied and pasted from another defendant’s report. (Eichele said he, too, had concerns about the document.)

In her lengthy argument to the court, Miles emphasized McMillin’s accountability through the testing and counseling.

“... He has taken affirmative, dedicated, daily, repetitive actions to prove to this court, to the community, and mostly to the victims, that he is committed to his sobriety, that he is remorseful for his actions, and that he only wants to move forward and be the best version of himself,” Miles said.

More than two dozen people penned letters of support for McMillin and a few testified on his behalf. They described the crash as an aberration for someone who’s performed charity and volunteer work and has good character.

Park County Assessor Terry Call, who previously worked with McMillin in the assessor’s office, praised him as a hard, diligent, committed worker.

Call said he was both shocked and “seriously disappointed” by the crash, but “it doesn’t change my opinion of his qualities [as a person].”

McMillin’s current boss at a Cody restaurant similarly praised him as an “excellent employee” while a longtime family friend talked about how good of a person McMillin has been since his youth.

While acknowledging her bias, McMillin’s mother advocated for probation.

“Those letters that you got from the people? That’s who Wade is,” Linda McMillin told the court, adding, “we feel what he did was wrong, absolutely, but please don’t throw away his life in prison. He deserves another chance.”

‘Some painful lessons’

As he mulled prison time versus probation, Simpson said that he’s seen some defendants serve lengthy prison sentences and come out “as bad as they were when they went in,” while others serve a short stint in jail and change their lives for the better.

The judge indicated that he saw McMillin — who served three days in custody following his 2024 arrest — in the latter category.

“… if you don’t learn anything from this, the whole exercise has been a waste of time, energy and resources,” Simpson said. “But I think you have learned from it. You’ve learned some painful lessons.”

He noted that McMillin will likely carry the felony conviction for the rest of his life.

Eichele initially charged McMillin with a felony count of aggravated assault and battery, but agreed to modify it to DUI with serious bodily injury as part of a plea deal. McMillin agreed to plead no contest to the offense, while Eichele dropped a separate felony count of property destruction and a misdemeanor DUI charge.

No restitution was ordered, as McMillin’s insurer covered the other couple’s medical bills and more in a settlement, his attorney said. While out on bond, McMillin reportedly spent $11,765 on testing, an ignition interlock device and treatment, while Simpson ordered him to pay another $2,200 to the court as part of his sentence.

The judge encouraged McMillin to learn from the experience and to help others. In his earlier remarks, McMillin had pledged to move forward.

“If there can be a reward in all this, it will be proving myself, my intentions and living up to my potential,” he said, “not only for myself, [but] the people of Park County, this court, and especially to [the couple].”

McMillin repeatedly apologized to the couple during last week’s hearing, saying he’d wanted to do so ever since the crash. He described them as “the victims of my stupidity” and said he hopes they can eventually come to forgive him, as he works on forgiving himself.

Simpson said he wished the couple had been present to hear the apology, as he could tell it was from McMillin’s heart. He directed McMillin to write them a letter.

Other conditions of his probation include continuing to use an ignition interlock device, random breath testing for another 18 months, attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings at least three times a week and following rules set by his probation officer. Four to six years of prison time is hanging in suspension for any violations.

‘You know what you have to do,” Simpson told McMillin. “I expect you to follow it to the letter and continue down the path that you’re on — and keep your head up, OK?”

McMillin said he would.