TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - New Jersey’s Supreme Court has upheld a 32-year prison sentence for a man convicted in a drunken-driving crash that killed a nine-year-old boy and left the boy’s 11-year-old friend paralyzed.
William Liepe was driving a Ford Explorer in Mays Landing in 2011 when he slammed into the rear of a Honda Accord carrying a father who was driving his son and another boy to a softball game.
The impact sent the car into the path of an oncoming Cadillac Escalade.
Liepe was sentenced to 32 years with no parole for 27 years. An appeals court ordered a new sentencing, noting the defendant wouldn’t be eligible for parole until he turned 89.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday concluded the sentence accurately reflected the crimes and wasn’t excessive.
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