Killer To Spend 30 Years In Prison For Cabby’s Death Brother Says Victim Would Have Bought Food For Hungry Attacker

A 21-year-old Spokane man will spend 30 years in prison for killing a cabdriver who relatives said would have bought his attacker dinner out of kindness.

Alon Slater admitted killing 45-year-old Duane “Dusty” Hutsell last March in north Spokane.

Ignoring prosecutor requests for a 25-year sentence, Superior Court Judge Paul Bastine sentenced Slater on Monday to 30 years - nearly the maximum possible under state sentencing guidelines.

In jail, Slater told authorities he and two youths, Josh Kaczor, 18, and Kory Ludwig, 17, had decided to rob a cabdriver March 6.

Slater called for a cab and then demanded money from Hutsell when he picked the group up around midnight near the Onion restaurant at 7511 N. Division.

When Hutsell reportedly said, “You’ve got to be kidding,” Slater shot the cabdriver in the face, according to police reports.

He then shot Hutsell a second time in the head. The three took $40 in cash from Hutsell’s pockets.

Kaczor was sentenced to 10 years in prison for second-degree murder. Ludwig received a two-year term for rendering criminal assistance.

Slater told Bastine during the sentencing proceedings that he had acted out of desperation and hunger. Needing money, he and the teenagers plotted the robbery but never intended to kill Hutsell, he said.

After his arrest, Slater had told police he had shot Hutsell when he felt the cabdriver “didn’t show him any respect.”

Slater offered no further explanation Monday why he had killed Hutsell.

On the recommendation of defense attorney John Rodgers, Slater entered a guilty plea to first-degree murder.

Slater had no prior felony convictions, Rodgers said.

Mike Hutsell, brother of Dusty Hutsell, said he would have preferred a life sentence for Slater.

“I’m not fully happy with 30 years. But it’s better than giving him 20 or 25 years,” Hutsell said after the sentencing.

Hutsell also said his brother’s murder was a senseless, unexplainable act of violence.

“My brother would have gone out of his way to avoid a confrontation.

“If they had told him they were hungry, Dusty would have taken them to a restaurant and bought them hamburgers,” Hutsell said.

Dusty Hutsell, who was divorced, enjoyed driving a cab because it gave him time to read while waiting for passengers and the chance to talk with people, his brother said.

After getting a physics degree from Washington State University, Dusty Hutsell briefly worked as a researcher.

But he quit that profession after deciding he wanted no part in contracts with the government, his brother said.

“He was a genius. He did other jobs, but in the end, he also went back to driving cab,” Mike Hutsell said.

, DataTimes