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SALT LAKE COUNTY -- The driver who walked away from a fatal accident on Interstate 80 earlier this month has been arrested, but not on charges pertaining to that case.
John Bishop is behind bars on a $250,000 cash-only bond. At the time of the accident, he was on probation for a separate DUI-related charge.
In January, 35-year-old Bishop pleaded guilty to alcohol-related reckless driving. One of the conditions of the agreement was that he wouldn't drink and drive even if he was under the legal limit.
It helped him avoid a six-month jail sentence: an opportunity prosecutors say he's now blown. "He violated that privilege in a way in which the community should not suffer," said Sim Gill, chief city prosecutor for Salt Lake City.
Two weeks ago, Bishop had allegedly been drinking when he got behind the wheel of his BMW with five friends inside. Witnesses say he was driving on I-80 at more than 100 miles an hour when he rear-ended an SUV.
Six people were injured in the accident; 26-year-old Jason Palmer, who was riding in Bishop's car, was killed.
"He wanted to succeed in his career and make a stable life for his family," Palmer's ex-girlfriend Annie Gamblin told KSL last week.
Bishop fled the scene, turning up at a hospital hours later.
Charges in that accident have not yet been filed. The Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office is screening them. Prosecutors tell us they've asked the Utah Highway Patrol to further investigate certain aspects of the case, which could take weeks.
Gill felt the allegations, combined with witness accounts, were enough to revoke probation. "He presented an ongoing risk to the community," he said.
Bishop has a court date for the probation violation later this month. The district attorney's office says it could still be weeks before they file charges, but those charges could range from reckless driving to automobile homicide.
E-mail: sdallof@ksl.com
