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MN Truck Driver Sentenced For Fatal Crash In ND

FARGO, N.D. (AP) -- A Minnesota truck driver has been sentenced to serve about 2 1/2 months in jail for a crash in North Dakota last June that killed a motorcycle driver.

Fifty-six-year-old James Toner, of Long Prairie, Minn., reached a deal with prosecutors in which he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor aggravated reckless driving charge. He initially had been charged with felony manslaughter.

Authorities say Toner drifted wide to the left with his semitrailer so he could make a right-hand turn at a Fargo intersection. Twenty-nine-year-old motorcyclist Jason Viestenz, of Fargo, was trailing and collided with the rig. He died and his 10-year-old son was injured.

Toner will not be allowed to have a commercial driver's license during two years of probation following his jail term.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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