Mission Hills Attorney Gets 5 Years After Court Rejects Deal in Fatal Wrong-Way Crash

A Johnson County, Missouri, District Court refused to let a former Kansas City-area personal injury attorney trade prison time for a treatment program, instead sentencing him to five years behind bars for a wrong-way drunk driving crash that killed a Lee's Summit man in September 2024. Peter E. Goss, of Mission Hills, Kansas, had pleaded guilty in June to one count of DWI resulting in death after driving a Chevrolet Suburban into oncoming traffic on U.S. 50 Highway near Highway Z, colliding head-on with a Subaru Legacy driven by 65-year-old Kevin Wilson.

The Johnson County, Missouri, District Court rejected a proposed plea agreement on Monday that could have allowed Goss to seek probation after completing a 120-day treatment program, ruling the arrangement was not sufficient punishment for the fatal crash, according to the Johnson County Post. The court rejected the proposed probation arrangement. The court imposed a five-year prison sentence.

A Head-On Crash on the Wrong Side of the Highway

The crash happened on September 20, 2024, in Johnson County, Missouri, when Goss drove his Chevrolet Suburban west in the eastbound lanes of U.S. 50 Highway, according to FOX4KC. The Missouri State Highway Patrol said Goss crashed head-on into Wilson's Subaru Legacy. Wilson, a 65-year-old Lee's Summit resident, was pronounced dead at the scene, court records show.

Goss's Chevrolet rolled onto its passenger side, and troopers found him trapped inside, according to court records cited by FOX4KC. He was taken to Research Medical Center in Kansas City for treatment of serious injuries, the Star-Journal reported at the time. Court records indicate Goss refused a chemical blood test requested by state troopers and asked for an attorney, though a preliminary breathalyzer test reportedly returned a result of 0.160 percent — twice the legal blood alcohol limit — according to FOX4KC.

During his guilty plea in June, Goss admitted to driving into the wrong lanes after drinking, the Johnson County Post reported. He was initially arrested on suspicion of DWI, and later faced charges for driving the wrong direction on a divided highway. As part of the plea, prosecutors dismissed other charges.

Nine-Month Wait Before Charges, Then a Civil Settlement

Johnson County Prosecuting Attorney Robert Russell did not file formal felony charges against Goss until June 24, 2025 — more than nine months after the collision — as investigators built the case, the Johnson County Post's reporting shows. Before criminal charges were even filed, Wilson's two adult children had already reached a resolution through the civil courts. Goss's insurance company finalized a $2.25 million wrongful death settlement with them in January 2025 following a lawsuit filed the previous December, according to the Johnson County Post's earlier coverage. After legal fees, the settlement provided $843,750 each to Wilson's son and daughter.

Goss had built a career as a personal injury attorney in the Kansas City metro area, having founded The Goss Law Firm before the crash, according to background reported on the Johnson County Post's Facebook page. Defense counsel said in June that Goss would voluntarily surrender his licenses to practice law in both Kansas and Missouri following his guilty plea, the outlet reported.

State Law Set the Floor for Sentencing

DWI resulting in the death of another person who was not a passenger is classified as a Class B felony, punishable by five to 15 years in state prison. The five-year sentence was at the low end of that range.

The case unfolds against a broader backdrop of impaired driving on Missouri roads. The article also discusses Missouri traffic crashes and DWI arrests. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 30% of all traffic fatalities in 2024 involved an alcohol-impaired driver. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported that 12,429 traffic deaths involved drunk driving in 2023.