CLEAR LAKE, Minn. — An Avon man will serve a prison sentence of nearly 10 years after pleading guilty in a 2023 crash that left one person dead and another badly injured.
The Sherburne County Attorney's Office shared Thursday that 24-year-old Hunter Buckentine was sentenced to nine years and eight months in the fatal crash, which took place around 1 a.m. on Aug. 19. The Minnesota State Patrol said a vehicle driven by Buckentine was clocked at 132 mph on Highway 10 in Becker before it slammed into a second vehicle, killing 34-year-old Jordan Kramer of Clarissa. Another person in the car, 38-year-old Candice Pooler of Clarissa, was taken to a nearby hospital by air ambulance with life-threatening injuries while another woman was found in the ditch with minor injuries.
Buckentine would be charged with third-degree murder but eventually pleaded guilty to one count of criminal vehicular homicide and another of criminal vehicular operation.
“This level of recklessness on our roads led to senseless injuries and loss of life,” said County Attorney Kathleen Heaney. “The only measure of justice that the system can give to the families and friends impacted is that of holding the defendant accountable for his deeds. With this accountability, it is our hope that the families and friends may begin their journey of healing
A witness told investigators he had been drinking with Buckentine in a Becker bar before the crash. Prosecutors say shortly before hitting the other vehicle Buckentine took a Snapchat of his speedometer reading 150 mph and posted it with a caption that read "a new record."
Crash reconstruction by the Minnesota State Patrol said Buckentine's Infiniti was moving at 133 mph when it rear-ended the victim's vehicle.
