Blake Wimberly v. State of Arkansas

── Blake Wimberly v. State of Arkansas ── Court: Court of Appeals of Arkansas Date: March 18, 2026 Category: General Cite as 2026 Ark. App. 190 ARKANSAS COURT OF APPEALS DIVISION I No. CR-25-377 Opinion Delivered March 18, 2026 BLAKE WIMBERLY APPELLANT APPEAL FROM THE GRANT COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT [NO. 27CR-23-70] V. HONORABLE STEPHEN L. SHIRRON, STATE OF ARKANSAS JUDGE APPELLEE AFFIRMED CASEY R. TUCKER, Judge Blake Wimberly appeals his convictions of two counts of manslaughter in the Grant County Circuit Court. In addition to asserting that the verdicts are not supported by sufficient evidence, Wimberly argues that the circuit court abused its discretion by (1) permitting a witness to testify in violation of the rule of sequestration; (2) restating the law regarding parole eligibility to correct a perceived mistake in the State’s sentencing closing argument; (3) permitting the State to introduce evidence that Wimberly had a pending traffic warrant; (4) permitting the State to introduce a witness’s 911 call; and (5) allowing the State to display a photo of each victim during the entirety of the trial. We affirm. This case stems from a tragic car wreck that occurred in the early-morning hours of January 6, 2023. A southbound red Dodge truck collided head-on with a pharmaceutical- delivery van. The driver and only occupant of the van, sixty-one-year-old Randy Burks, and one of the two occupants of the truck, twenty-seven-year-old Dawson Whitmire, were killed on impact. The other occupant of the truck was Wimberly, and he was seriously injured. On June 12, 2023, the State charged Wimberly with two counts of negligent homicide. The State later amended the charges to manslaughter. The case proceeded to trial on February 13, 2025. The State’s first witness was Alexander Chief of Police Tim Preator. He testified that on the night of January 5, 2023, he stopped a red Dodge Ram truck that was speeding and that he believed might be stolen. Wimberly was driving the truck, and Dawson Whitmire was in the passenger seat. When Preator asked Wimberly why he was driving in such a manner, Wimberly replied, “Well, my buddy just got this truck. We’re out playing in it.” Preator ran Wimberly’s information through the state information system, and the system returned a report that Wimberly had a misdemeanor traffic warrant out of Grant County, and his license was suspended. Instead of taking him into custody, Preator told Wimberly, “[I]t’s your lucky day. . . . Grant County is going to give you a court date.” Preator proceeded to allow Whitmire, who owned the truck, to trade places with Wimberly and drive away. According to Preator, Wimberly was not swerving or changing lanes when he stopped him; the only issue with Wimberly’s driving was that he was speeding. Lacey McDougal testified next. She was driving south on U.S. Highway 167 toward Sheridan, Arkansas, at 3:00 a.m. on January 6 when a red truck sped up close to the back of her car, then swung wide when passing her. McDougal testified that the highway has five lanes: two southbound lanes, two northbound lanes, and a turning lane in the middle. She was driving in the outside southbound lane, and the red truck went all the way into the 2 turning lane to pass her. McDougal described it as driving “with no regard to the paint on the pavement.” The truck continued in the turning lane instead of returning to one of the southbound lanes. McDougal continued behind the truck for two miles and saw the truck move left until it was in the far-left lane