A Rockaway Township woman was recently sentenced to five years behind bars for causing a DWI accident that resulted in the death of her son.
The suspect, a 63-year-old resident of Rockaway NJ who previously served as the transportation supervisor for the local school district, was charged with vehicular manslaughter after being involved in a fatal auto accident on June 26, 2015. The fatal crash occurred on Upper Hibernia Road in Rockaway Township. According to Morris County prosecutors, the suspect was highly intoxicated when she lost control of her vehicle and left the roadway. The motor vehicle eventually came to a stop after striking a mailbox and a tree.
The suspect’s 40-year-old son was a passenger in the car at the time of the accident. He reportedly went into cardiac arrest as a result of the frightening car crash. Three days after the accident, he died due to his injuries.
The suspect allegedly had a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.263 percent on the night of the accident. This was more than three times the legal limit of 0.08 percent in New Jersey.
The suspect avoided trial in Morris County Superior Court by reaching a plea deal with the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office. The terms of the suspect’s plea agreement call for her to be sentenced to five years in New Jersey State Prison.
One factor in the stiff sentence was the suspect’s prior record, which included a DWI conviction for a drunk driving accident in April 2014.
For more information about this case, go to the NJ.com article, “Woman Gets 5 Years in Prison for Drunk Driving Crash That Killed Son.”
