Hopkins Guilty, Sentenced to Prison

A jury of six men and six women deliberated for six hours yesterday before finding a former Cody psychiatrist guilty on two misdemeanor counts and a felony charge relating to a 2017 crash that injured another Cody resident.
Dr. Matthew Hopkins was sentenced to 18 to 36 months in prison, with credit for time served in the Park County Jail, after the March 14th crash. Hopkins was convicted of driving while under the influence of a controlled substance and intentional misuse of a toxic product – in this case, a canned air product called Dust-off. The two misdemeanor offenses were accompanied by a felony charge of assault with a deadly weapon – his vehicle, which the Park County deputy prosecutor says was used in an intentional act of aggravated assault when he took the wheel while impaired.
The Cody Enterprise reports that Cody resident Jamie Bunker was in the vehicle that Hopkins ran into head-on the morning of March 14th, and suffered whiplash for which she had to undergo surgery. As a result of her injuries, Bunker testified that she lost her job at a local lawn care company.
The Enterprise related Hopkins’ battle with substance abuse, with the former doctor citing the sudden death of his father and the loss of his home as factors in his relapse in the months leading up to the crash. Hopkins’ psychiatry practice had focused on children and adolescents, as well as addiction therapy.