Truck driver sentenced in 2019 fatal accident

    A semi-truck driver whose rig crossed the center in 2019 and collided with a pickup, killing its driver, was sentenced in December in Chase County Court.
    Brad Kosinski, 42, of Eckley, Colorado was sentenced to 30 days in jail, a $500 fine and 24 months probation after he pled no contest to motor vehicle homicide, careless driving and driving left of center.
    The accident on July 1, 2019  killed Clayton Giesbrecht, 49, of Madrid, a well-known commercial builder in the area who owned C & S Construction.
    The semi was pulling an empty tank, and upon collision, the tractor’s fuel tank  caught fire. Kosinski escaped the burning cab, but Giesbrecht was trapped inside the pickup that was lying on its side.
    The accident occurred on Highway 6, about 7.5 miles west of Imperial.
Personnel with the Imperial Volunteer Fire Department cut Giesbrecht from his pickup and he was transported to Chase County Community Hospital, where he died.
    Judge Edward Steenburg heard the case after the State of Nebraska filed charged on Oct. 28, 2019, about four months after the accident.
    As part of the judge’s Dec. 9 order, Kosinski will serve six days of his jail sentence on three specific dates—July 1, Aug. 13 and Oct. 1 in both 2021 and 2022.
    The three dates correspond with the date of the accident, and the birthdays of Kosinski and Giesbrecht.
    According to County Attorney Arlan Wine, who prosecuted the case, Dec. 1, 2022 should be the last of the defendant’s probation, and the remaining 24 days of his 30-day jail sentence is subject to being waived, upon recommendation of the probation officer and order of the judge.
    Kosinski was represented by attorney Joel Burke of Imperial.