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West Michigan man receives jail sentence for 2018 fatal crash

Posted at 4:40 PM, Apr 11, 2019
and last updated 2019-04-11 16:40:49-04

CLINTON COUNTY, Mich. — A Clinton County judge sentenced Ryan Zandstra, 33, to one year in jail for a crash that caused the death of Tyler Jehlinek.

Zandstra rear-ended the 19-year-old’s vehicle in August 2018 in a construction zone.

Zandstra was featured by the Problem Solvers in June 2018 for cashing a $5,000 deposit check and never starting work on a driveway pavement job.

Wednesday, the judge sentenced Zandstra to serve six months in jail and suspended the other six months if Zandstra successfully completes two years of probation. He’d been charged with moving violation causing death.

Terry Jehlinek, Tyler’s father, has been vocal about wanting a harsher sentence. Lab results show a metabolite or residue of cocaine was in Zandstra’s system at the time of the accident, according to the county prosecutor. However, prosecutor Charles Sherman said that trace doesn’t indicate Zandstra was high at the time of the accident.