Despite killing best friend in car accident, Kaplan's Kade Abshire sentenced to house arrest

KAPLAN - Kade Abshire could have been sentenced to 30 years in prison for vehicular homicide, but because it was his best friend he killed in a truck accident two years ago, Abshire will not be going to jail.
Judge Durwood Conque sentenced Abshire, who is now 25, to three years house arrest. He can only go to work, church, home and a doctor’s office for the next three years.
While on house arrest, he has to give two speeches a year on the dangers of drinking and driving to schools in Vermilion Parish.
Two years ago Abshire and Pete Johnson of Kaplan were traveling north on La. 35, south of Kaplan, and went off the road. The truck they were in flipped. Abshire was the driver, and Johnson was a passenger.
Johnson died as a result of an accident while Abshire was arrested for DWI first offense. His blood alcohol level was .160, twice the legal limit.
Abshire and Johnson were best friends.
Before Judge Durwood Conque sentenced Abshire, he read a letter from the Johnson family on their recommendation on what Abshire’s sentence should be. The letter recommended that Abshire not be sent to jail. It was the Johnsons’ letter to Judge Conque that helped guide Conque to sentence Abshire.