A former Ringle man charged with homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle stemming from a 2006 crash avoided trial today by pleading to a reduced charge.

Ted Erickson, 41, pleaded no contest this morning to a charge of homicide by negligent operation of a vehicle in Marathon County Circuit Court. Erickson faces up to 10 years in prison when he is sentenced Jan. 8.

Prosecutors say Erickson was driving Sept. 2, 2006, when a person in his vehicle, Juliann M. Landowski, 34, was killed in a crash on Highway 29 in Ringle. Erickson was charged with the offense in March 2008 and was freed after posting bond.

The amended criminal complaint filed today by prosecutors indicated that no one saw who was driving the vehicle at the time of the crash. The complaint also said that crash reconstruction reports prepared by prosecutors and the defense had different opinions if the evidence at the crash scene could determine who was driving.

On June 28, 2008, three months after Erickson was charged in connection with the fatal crash, Erickson was arrested on a charge of fourth-offense operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated following a crash in Weston. Erickson pleaded no contest this morning to that charge and faces up to an additional year in prison.

Court records show Erickson having an Oak Creek address, but jail records show him having been held in the Marathon County Jail since his June 2008 arrest.