A Chicago, Illinois resident who rear-ended a semi-truck, killing her passenger, has been sentenced to prison by a judge in Van Buren County, Michigan, according to mlive.com. The car / truck crash happened by the Interstate 94 westbound entrance ramp in Mattawan, MI. on February 23, 2007.
The car accident occurred when the driver, a Chicago, Illinois resident, drove around a police roadblock and then struck the back of a truck that was stopped in traffic. Her passenger, Karl L. Shaw, 27, also from Chicago, was killed in the auto collision. Traffic was backed up because of a truck fire.
Beyond the fact that the defendant was driving while intoxicated, a speed-sensing device in her 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt showed she was moving at 103 mph just before the impact.
On January 2, 2008, the driver pleaded no contest to operating a vehicle while intoxicated, causing death. She was sentenced to a term of 22 months – 15 years in prison by Circuit Judge William Buhl, and she will receive credit for time already served.