MASON CITY – A Worth county man has been sent to prison for 10 years after he struck a plea deal in a fatal drunk driving case in which he took a Hampton woman’s life.
On November 25, 2016 at about 7:35 PM, the Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office responded to the 10000 Block of Partridge Avenue (Highway 65) for a three-vehicle collision. A 2005 Chevrolet K3500 driven by Paul Edward Wood, age 59 of Manly, was traveling North on Partridge Avenue when it crossed the center line. The Chevy pickup struck a Southbound 2006 Chevrolet Impala driven by 22-year-old Griselda Castaneda Tello of Hampton. A third vehicle, a 2001 Daewoo Lanos driven by 58-year-old Jacqueline Sickels of Sheffield was traveling South on Partridge Avenue when it struck debris in the roadway and it was sent spinning out of control.
Griselda Castaneda Tello was pronounced dead at the scene. Paul Edward Wood was transported by ambulance to Mercy Medical Center North Iowa with minor injuries. Jacqueline Sickels was transported to Mercy by private vehicle for treatment.
Assisting the Cerro Gordo County Sheriffs Department was the Iowa State Patrol, Mason City Fire Department, Rockwell Police Department, Rockwell Fire Department.
The collision remained under investigation by the Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office and the Iowa State Patrol.
Saturday, April 1, 2017, Paul Edward Wood was booked into the Cerro Gordo county jail on multiple charges, including: felony B homicide by vehicle; operating while under the influence; driving on the wrong side of a two-way highway; no proof of insurance; possession of drug paraphernalia; and two counts of possession of a controlled substance.
Wood was sentenced at a hearing on April 30 in Cerro Gordo county. He was given 10 years in prison on a charge of homicide by vehicle – reckless driving. He also got two, 5-year sentences for possession of methamphetamine and possession of marijuana.
