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Lonnie Alexander Sigmon, 22, was convicted of gross misdemeanor criminal vehicular injury while driving in a negligent manner under the influence of a controlled
substance. Three additional charges were dropped in a plea agreement. He will not face any jail time when he is sentenced in September, according to the agreement.
Sigmon submitted an Alford plea, under which he admitted no guilt but agreed there was enough evidence that a jury would likely convict him. As a result, Sigmon was convicted on one charge instead of facing possible convictions on all four charges from a jury.
According to his testimony, Sigmon was driving on East Burns Valley Road at 10:41 a.m. Oct. 1, 2007, when his car went off the road and rolled several times in the ditch. Two passengers in the car were injured in the wreck and were taken to Community Memorial Hospital with minor injuries.
According to court documents, Sigmon failed to negotiate a curve while traveling between 55 and 60 mph and skidded sideways before going into the ditch. When Winona County Sheriff’s deputies arrived, they smelled marijuana on Sigmon and noticed his eyes were bloodshot. Sigmon admitted to police he “smoked a bowl” of marijuana earlier that morning, the criminal complaint states.
Sigmon submitted a blood test at around 2 p.m. that found traces of marijuana and cocaine in his system, court documents show.
He returns to court for sentencing Sept. 18.
Contact Kevin Behr at (507) 453-3524 or at kbehr@winonadailynews.com.
