A Redmond man pleaded guilty on Aug. 5 to vehicular homicide and reckless endangerment for killing a Kirkland bicyclist in December 2011.
Nathan Jeremie Godwin, 28, initially pleaded not guilty to striking 36-year-old Bradley J. Nakatani of Kirkland with his SUV in 2011.
“… I was the designated driver, but drank alcohol and smoked some marijuana before driving my friend home,” Godwin said in his plea statement. “I was speeding through an intersection and failed to see a bicyclist and hit and killed him.”
A King County prosecuting attorney recommended Godwin receive one year of jail time and a $5,000 fine for reckless endangerment and 20 months of jail time with 18 months of community custody for vehicular homicide. Godwin’s sentencing hearing is set for Sept. 6 at King County Superior Court.
On Dec. 8, 2011 at around 3 a.m., Godwin sped 60 mph in his SUV east on Northeast 124th Street when he collided with Nakatani and his bicycle, according to Kirkland police investigation records. Nakatani had just turned south onto Slater Avenue Northeast from the street Godwin was on and died of severe trauma.
Documents state Godwin originally told police he was sober but that he had taken Suboxone to treat his opiate addiction about six hours prior.
After agreeing to a sobriety test and failing, he told police he had drank a “Jeremiah Weed Iced Tea,” an alcoholic beverage.
A breath sample revealed he was at 0.078 percent alcohol, however it was 45 minutes after the accident occurred.
Godwin was transported to EvergreenHealth Medical Center for a special evidence blood draw.
He also admitted to police that he had consumed two glasses of champagne, a strong alcoholic drink called an AMF and a marijuana blunt just a couple of hours prior to the accident, the documents continue. He added he was also on Lexapro, an anti-depressant.
“He admitted he thought he hit a bicyclist and continued driving until his passenger told him to turn around and go back,” investigation documents state. “Godwin did so and observed that there was a bicyclist lying in the middle of the street, appearing as if ‘he was asleep.’”
The Medical Examiner’s Office said Natakani had a skull fracture, among other injuries. Police said he was wearing reflective clothing, lights and a helmet.
Nakatani was a software engineer at Redmond’s Alston Grid and was heading home from work. He was also a 1994 Newport High School graduate, who earned a Master’s Degree from Stanford.
Godwin, a convicted felon for possessing the drug MDMA, has an extensive driving record, including more than a dozen traffic violations for speeding, disobeying road signals, failure to stop at signals and reckless endangerment.
He will continue to be held on his previous $500,000 bail.
