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Driver gets jail time for 1996 crash By DANI DODGE Mail Tribune Six years ago, Holli Nelson was an avid skier and popular clerk at GI Joe's. Today, she continues to have girl-next-door good looks and a positive attitude, although she is paralyzed from the waist down - the result of a drunken driving crash in November 1996. She hasn't been back on the slopes, but on Tuesday Nelson, 24, got another thing she's been wanting these six long years - the chance to see the drunken driver who caused her paralysis sentenced for his crime. "It's just another step closer to getting in the groove of the rest of my life," Nelson said. On Tuesday, Jeffrey Scott Crutchfield, 31, of Spokane, Wash., pleaded no contest to third-degree assault, driving while under the influence of intoxicants and furnishing liquor to a minor. A charge of second-degree assault was dismissed in the plea bargain. Jackson County Circuit Judge Ray White sentenced Crutchfield to 13 months in jail - one month more than agreed to in the plea bargain. Crutchfield claims he was innocent. "I apologize for the tragic accident that night," Crutchfield told the judge. "But to this day, I still maintain my innocence. "But I can't let this drag on any longer. I need to get on with my life." One of the reasons the case took so long to get to court was that police originally were unsure whether Crutchfield or Nelson was driving when the crash occurred. Then, after Crutchfield was indicted, he was convicted in Arizona of federal wire and mail fraud and spent two years in prison there, said Deputy District Attorney John Bondurant. Crutchfield also pleaded guilty Tuesday to an unrelated charge of first-degree theft and was sentenced to 18 months probation. In the theft case, Crutchfield stole his roommate's identification and opened an account at a Medford jewelry store in late 1996. Crutchfield then bought more than $750 worth of jewelry in his roommate's name. He also has several misdemeanor convictions on his record. "I don't know whether the penitentiary time has done any good but you were basically a loser for the time you were here," Judge White noted. Crutchfield insisted he's a better man. "I've completely changed my life," he said. On Nov. 8, 1996, Nelson was working at GI Joe's when Crutchfield stopped by. The brother of another clerk, Crutchfield was a frequent visitor to the store and that night several of the employees agreed to get together after work. Crutchfield offered Nelson a ride in his pickup. Nelson accepted the ride to the bar at Las Margaritas in Medford. Crutchfield bought drinks for himself and Nelson - who was 18 at the time - but when no one else from GI Joe's showed up, they decided to leave, Nelson said. The accident occurred at about 10 p.m. when Crutchfield took the Central Point exit off of Interstate 5. He lost control of the vehicle and it rolled. Nelson, who wasn't wearing a seatbelt, was thrown from the pickup - her back broken and spine severed. She endured four surgeries and years of physical therapy and will remain in a wheelchair the rest of her life. "Only in the last year and a half have I been able to come to terms with my condition," Nelson told the judge. "One thing that has helped me was the thought the court would hand down justice." Nelson now lives in Salem and is attending community college. She plans to get her degree in psychology and help others who are disabled. "Maybe have a family and do what everyone else does," she added. Although she said she wishes Crutchfield had gotten more time in jail, Nelson said she isn't going to dwell on it. "My handicap is physical, but his is mental and emotional," Nelson said. "He'll have to be him for the rest of his life and that's a good enough sentence." Nelson has civil lawsuits pending against Las Margaritas and Crutchfield. Reach reporter Dani Dodge at 776-4471, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.