Clover man pleads guilty of manslaughter in friend’s crash death. He’s not going to prison
A York County man will not go to prison after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter in the death of a friend in a July crash, according to court officials and records.
Jonathan William Malave, 39, of Clover, was sentenced to five years probation and 1,000 hours of community service. He pleaded guilty in the July wreck that left David Huck dead, said Dan D’Agostino, Malave’s lawyer.
The guilty plea Tuesday included York County prosecutors dropping a charge of felony DUI with death because evidence showed Malave was not impaired at the time of the crash, said D’Agostino and Matthew Shelton, 16th Circuit assistant solicitor.
D’Agostino said Malave was devastated that Huck died in the crash, and appreciates the compassion shown by Huck’s family concerning the resolution of the case.
“Mr. Malave is very appreciative of the way the solicitor’s office and Mr. Huck’s family handled this case,” D’Agostino said after court. “These two men were very close friends.”
The probation and community service sentence was negotiated as part of the plea deal, lawyers in the case said. Involuntary manslaughter carries a sentence of zero to five years under South Carolina law. State law defines involuntary manslaughter as “reckless disregard of the safety of others.”
Huck was the passenger in the vehicle Malave was driving when it crashed on Baird Road in York County, said Shelton the prosecutor.
Malave’s driving was reckless, Shelton said. Malave came upon another vehicle while speeding, swerved, then the vehicle flipped after it crashed, Shelton said. Huck’s family agreed with the plea deal and sentencing that included community service, Shelton said.
“This was a terribly tragic incident but I think justice was served,” Shelton said after court.
