Culloden man pleads guilty to homicides in 2022 DUI crash

Wyrick killed two women in October 2022 in a vehicle crash on MacCorkle Avenue near Winfield Road in St. Albans.

Dotty Lou Hayes, 73, and her daughter, Sherri L. McClanahan, 53, died as a result of the crash. Hayes’s husband, John Hayes, 79, and their 6-year-old grandson were seriously injured.

THC in Wyrick’s system

Wyrick was uninjured and admitted to using Delta-8 and Delta-9 THC before the crash.

He was initially charged with two counts each of driving under the influence causing death and driving under the influence causing serious bodily injury.

According to Kanawha County Sheriff Sgt. Joshua Lester, Wyrick had eight nanograms of THC in his system per milliliter of blood. Lester said Wyrick was using the marijuana recreationally.

West Virginia’s legal level of impairment is three nanograms per milliliter of blood.

Plea agreement

Under Monday’s plea agreement, Wyrick was convicted of the two counts of driving under the influence causing death. The charges carry sentences of three to 15 years each. Akers can sentence Wyrick to serve the charges at the same time or in succession. He will be sentenced on April 30 and will only be eligible for parole after serving the minimum amount of time, which will be at least three years.

Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Faun Cushman said the victims’ family understood and accepted the plea.

“This has been on the table … so they had much notice on this,� Cushman said.

Cushman used the plea is a reminder to the citizens of Kanawha County not to drive while under the influence of any substance, legal or not.

“Alcohol is legal. Medical marijuana is legal. Over-the-counter prescriptions are legal. Opiates are legal if you have a prescription,� he said. “That does not make it OK to get behind the wheel of a car inebriated and operate that vehicle.�