• 29
  • November
    2011

A Wisconsin man who caused a fatal crash last summer has been sentenced to 31 years in prison. In reference to the fatal car accident, the judge said the driver is a "lifelong project," according to the Pioneer Press.

Five college friends apparently got together for a cookout last summer. They were driving together in one car on Highway 35 when they were struck by a drunk driver. One of the women was killed while others were injured.

At the time of the crash, the 28-year-old man apparently had a blood alcohol level of .27 percent. He also ran from the scene of the crash rather than staying to help the victims. He says now he doesn't remember the accident.

The judge, whose sister was apparently killed by a drunk driver, was not lenient in the man's sentencing. In addition to 31 years in prison, the man was sentenced to 40 years of extended supervision and 15 years of probation.

According to the Pioneer Press, he had pleaded guilty to six felonies: homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle, two counts of injury by intoxicated use of a vehicle, two counts of operating while intoxicated causing injury, and hit-and-run resulting in death.

The 23-year-old woman who died in the crash had just started a new job as a choral teacher only days before she died. Families of the surviving victims say they have had to deal with large medical bills. They had hoped for an even tougher sentence.

Source: Pioneer Press, "Wisconsin drunken driver gets 31 years in prison in fatal crash," Anne Jungen, Nov. 29, 2011