A Douglas County man will spend just over 13 years behind bars for a drug-fueled crash last summer that killed a 51-year-old driver and left a teenage passenger seriously hurt. Zachary Ray Odom was sentenced to 157 months in the Kansas Department of Corrections after pleading guilty to charges connected to the July 2025 wreck on U.S. Highway 40 in Douglas County.
Odom, described as a 30-year-old Douglas County man by KCTV5, pleaded guilty to one count of reckless second-degree murder and one count of aggravated battery while driving under the influence, according to FOX4KC.com. An October 2025 report from the Lawrence Journal-World identified him as a 29-year-old Tecumseh man.
How the Crash Unfolded on Highway 40
The crash happened on July 18, 2025, on U.S. Highway 40 in Douglas County, per KCTV5's report. Odom was driving west when he crossed into eastbound lanes, made contact with another vehicle, and then struck Leonard “Skip” Schupp's pickup truck head-on, the station reported.
The wreck involved three vehicles total, the Journal-World reported. Schupp died at the scene, and a 15-year-old passenger in his vehicle suffered serious injuries, according to the same outlet. The driver of the cargo van that Odom's car first struck suffered only minor injuries, while Odom himself was seriously hurt in the crash, the Journal-World noted.
Drugs in His System at the Time of the Crash
Evidence presented at Odom's August plea hearing showed he was under the influence of methadone, methamphetamine and amphetamine at the time of the crash, according to KCTV5's account of the proceedings. FOX4KC reported that Odom had been receiving methadone treatment for about two years before the crash. Prosecutors argued that he understood the risks tied to his drug use but chose to get behind the wheel anyway, per FOX4KC.
Prosecutor: Decision Cost a Life
Douglas County District Attorney Dakota Loomis said Odom's decision to drive under the influence cost Skip Schupp his life and harmed his family and community, according to KCTV5. In addition to the prison term, Odom will be required to register as a violent offender for 15 years after his release, the station reported.
Similar cases have surfaced elsewhere in the Kansas City metro this year, though sentencing outcomes have varied. In Johnson County, a report from the Johnson County Post said an Olathe man received a roughly 26-year sentence for a fatal Lenexa drunk-driving crash, including more than 20 years on a reckless second-degree murder count. Another Johnson County case, covered separately by KCTV5 and by The Kansas City Star, resulted in a sentence of roughly ten years for reckless second-degree murder after a deadly Overland Park crash. KCTV5 reported 123 months, equivalent to The Kansas City Star’s 10 years and three months. Douglas County's case adds to that pattern of DUI-related fatalities working their way through metro-area courts this year.
