FAIRBANKS — The criminal prosecution of a Fairbanks road-rage killing quietly came to a conclusion at a court hearing last month when the killer agreed to plead guilty to manslaughter.

As part of a plea agreement, Michael C. Bostick, 45, was sentenced to 3 1/2 years in jail for the stabbing of Tim Lund, 55, outside Frontier Outfitters in spring 2011, according to court log notes.

Bostick, whose name was spelled “Bostic” in previous court documents, went on trial in December. The Fairbanks jury acquitted him on the charge of first-degree murder but was unable to reach a decision on whether Bostick acted in self-defense. Bostick’s attorney argued in trial that Bostick stabbed Lund in the stomach because Lund’s son Wally Lund had entered the fight, making his client feel threatened.

The fight began because of a driving dispute between the two men, who did not know each other, and prosecutors argued Bostick showed premeditation by flashing a sheathed knife before approaching Tim Lund.

Bostick was scheduled to go to trial again on the charge of second-degree murder July 16. At a scheduling hearing July 11, lawyers announced they reached a plea agreement and Bostick entered a guilty plea to the lesser charge of manslaughter. Prosecutors also agreed to accept as mitigating circumstance that the crime was “committed under duress, coercion, threat or compulsion.”

Bostick’s new attorney Robert Noreen with the state Office of Public Advocacy said on behalf of his client that Bostick has said he was saddened by the stabbing and never wanted it to happen, according to log notes.

He also asked whether Bostick will be able to bow hunt during three years of probation following his release.

Superior Court Judge Paul Lyle said a hunting bow was a weapon and would not be allowed during Bostick’s probation.

Bostick also will forfeit the knife used in the stabbing. Another probation condition restricts him from going near witnesses in the case or Frontier Outfitters, where members of the Lund family work.

Lund’s family came to the change of plea but did not make any statements in court about the resolution of the case, according to the log notes. At an early court hearing in the case, Wally Lund hurled a series of threats at Bostick when it was announced Bostick would try to argue he acted in self defense.

Contact Fairbanks Daily News-Miner staff writer Sam Friedman at 907-459-7545. Follow him on Twitter, @FDNMcrime