Williamsburg man takes plea deal in fatal crash

Reckart gets probation after pleading to involuntary manslaughter

HOLLIDAYSBURG -- A Williamsburg man will be on probation for five years after pleading guilty Thursday to involuntary manslaughter in connection with a two-vehicle crash that killed a

53-year-old Hollidaysburg man on April 22, 2016.

The plea agreement, as presented to Blair County Judge Timothy M. Sullivan, also requires 27-year-old Steven Allen Reckart to pay $4,624 in funeral-related expenses for Kenneth E. Swope Jr., who died in the

6 a.m. crash on River Road in Frankstown Township.

State police at Hollidaysburg said Reckart crossed the double yellow line and ran head-on into Swope's vehicle, killing Swope instantly. Reckart, who was cut away from his vehicle after the crash, was flown by helicopter to UPMC Altoona where a blood test showed oxycodone and buprenorphrine in his system, both used in opioid addiction treatment.

"Your actions caused the loss of life," widow Cheryl L. Swope told Reckart in court on Thursday. "And that's a heavy burden to bear if you have any moral conscious."

Reckart didn't respond to Swope's statement nor did he offer any remorse.

In answering questions posed by Sullivan, he did acknowledge guilty pleas to involuntary manslaughter, a first-degree misdemeanor, and failure to stay on the right side of the road, a summary offense.

"This was a terrible accident," Chief Public Defender Russ Montgomery told the judge when describing the proposed plea that he and District Attorney Richard Consiglio negotiated to resolve the case that was getting closer to a jury trial.

As part of the plea deal, Reckart's third-degree felony charge of homicide by vehicle was dropped.

The negotiated plea deal was a compromise for both sides, Montgomery told Sullivan.

Assistant District Attorney Derek Elensky, who represented Consiglio in court on Thursday, offered condolences to Cheryl Swope.

"I don't know that she'll ever have closure," Elensky advised the judge.

After the sentencing hearing concluded, Cheryl Swope acknowledged mixed emotions about the sentence of five years' probation.

"It is what it is," Cheryl Swope said. "I could carry on and say it's not fair, but it wouldn't make any difference. The (accused) have more rights than crime victims because of the way the state's laws are written."

Elensky advised the judge that the plea agreement requires Reckart, while on probation, to avoid drug and alcohol use, which could have been a contributing factor to the crash. That also means he cannot be in establishments where alcohol is served, Elensky said.

Montgomery acknowledged the restriction and faith in Reckart's compliance.

"I don't think you'll ever see Mr. Reckart (in court) again," Montgomery said.

Before his death, Kenneth Swope Jr. worked at Cenveo of Williamsburg as a maintenance supervisor.

"My husband was a very productive member of the community … and very intelligent," Cheryl Swope said. In the aftermath of a fire that damaged Cenveo's operations, probably in December 2015, she said her husband was in charge of a cleanup and restoration effort,which was supposed to last three months.

"It was done before that because he always beat his deadlines," Cheryl Swope said.

She also said her husband was a member of the American Legion in Hollidaysburg and its Legion Riders group, which helps organizations like the Children's Miracle Network.

"If somebody needed something done, he was the person who did it," she said.

Mirror Staff Writer Kay Stephens is at 946-7456.