Courts

Probation and jail for Trempealeau County truck driver, who caused traffic death

Published

5 years ago

July 19, 2019

Ten years on probation awaits the Trempealeau County truck driver, who caused a fatal crash near the Twin Cities last year.

Samuel Hicks was sentenced Friday by a judge in Stillwater, Minnesota, for rear ending a car that was stopped for a traffic light.

The other driver, college professor Robert Bursik, died when his car was hit by the Hicks semi, which was going 63 miles an hour.

Video from the truck showed that Hicks was looking at a real estate app on his phone seconds before the accident.

Hicks lives in Independence, Wis., and could spend up to a year in jail.

He will be required to make a public service announcement about distracted driving.

Brad Williams

A native of Prairie du Chien, Brad graduated from UW - La Crosse and has worked in radio news for more than 30 years, mostly in the La Crosse area. He regularly covers local courts and city and county government. Brad produces the features "Yesterday in La Crosse" and "What's Buried on Brad's Desk." He also writes the website "Triviazoids," which finds odd connections between events that happen on a certain date, and he writes and performs with the local comedy group Heart of La Crosse. Brad been featured on several national TV programs because of his memory skills.