A Corning man pleaded guilty Thursday as part of a plea agreement in connection with a 2010 crash that killed a Caltrans worker.
Russell Hodge, 48 admitted to one count of gross vehicular while intoxicated.
Hodge, who had two previous DUI convictions, had a .20 blood alcohol level when he hit and killed Caltrans worker Gary Smith on Highway 99 north of Chico on November 14, 2010.
Smith was manning a roadblock on the highway after another alleged fatal DUI crash.
Hodge was originally charged with one count of second degree murder in addition to the gross vehicular manslaughter charge.
That charge was dropped as part of a plea agreement where Hodge agreed to a 15 years to life sentence in state prison. He also waived all of his in custody credit that he had collected leading up to the trial.
Hodge will officially be sentenced on February 28th and will not be eligible for parole until 2025.
