Westport man gets 5 to 8 years in prison for OUI crash that killed elderly woman
A 63-year-old Westport man was sentenced Friday to serve five to eight years in prison for an OUI crash that killed a elderly woman last October.
Robert Hansen pleaded guilty to the charge of manslaughter by operating under the influence, according to the Bristol County District Attorney’s office.
Hansen was speeding in his SUV on Route 6 in Westport during the evening of October 16, 2015, when he rammed into the vehicle in front of him, driven by 73-year-old Geraldine Correia, the DA’s office said.
Correia was ejected from her car, which began to spin before rolling over and landing on its roof. She died at the hospital, according to the DA’s office.
Westport police arriving on the scene approached Hansen and immediately noticed he was intoxicated, the DA’s office said. Hansen failed field sobriety tests and police discovered several bottles of tequila, some of which were empty, along with empty beer cans in his vehicle.
The DA’s office said Hansen was “belligerent with police officers and ambulance personnel who attempted to evaluate him for injuries, at one point spitting at one of the officers who was taking him into custody.”
The investigation into the crash found Hansen had been driving recklessly before the crash and, at the time of the crash, he was believed to have minimum blood alcohol content of .13 and a maximum of .30. Reconstruction of the crash scene found Correia’s brake lights were on at the time of the crash and that Hansen was driving 85 mph in a 55 mph zone and never applied his brakes, according to the DA’s office.
”This was a very tragic, but unnecessary, death caused by the defendant. His reckless and drunken operation of his vehicle killed a woman who was merely going to get fish and chips for dinner,” Bristol District Attorney Quinn said in a statement. ”The lengthy state prison sentence imposed by the court was appropriate based on the defendant’s actions.”
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com