BELFAST, Maine — A 19-year-old woman will spend three years in prison after a high-speed car crash that killed her friend.
Chelsea Larrabee, 19, of Belfast received a 10-year sentence, with all but three years suspended, plus four years of probation and a six-year license suspension after she pleaded no contest in March to charges of manslaughter, operating under the influence and aggravated driving to endanger.
Waldo County Superior Court Justice Robert Murray decided the sentence on Thursday after hearing a tearful apology from Larrabee, and a plea for closure from the family of Christopher Wiley, 19, of Searsport, who was ejected from the vehicle during the crash and later died from injuries.
“He will never be more than 19, there’s nothing that can undo that, nothing that can cure that,” Assistant District Attorney Neil McLean told the judge.
Eight of Wiley’s family members, including his father, Christopher Wiley Sr., attended the sentencing. Wiley’s aunt, Kimberly Thompson read a statement on behalf of the family.
“He was too young to die,” Thompson said. “We hope to find some kind of closure today so the family can heal from this.”
The May 14 crash also injured two other passengers in the car. Cheyenne J. Larrabee, 23, the driver’s cousin, was partially ejected and suffered broken bones and other injuries. She attended the sentencing to show support for her cousin. Chelsea Larrabee and Carl C. Mcintire, 24, another backseat passenger, suffered lesser injuries.
Manslaughter, the most serious charge Larrabee faced, comes with a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison. Murray, the state and the defense each agreed that there were several mitigating factors that should reduce her sentence. She took responsibility by pleading to the charges, avoiding a trial. She had no priors and has expressed remorse throughout the process.
But Larrabee also had to contend with the fact that her blood alcohol level tested at 0.134 percent, above the legal limit of 0.08 percent, and that her blood also tested positive for marijuana, according to prosecutors. She also drove recklessly leading up to the accident. The car was traveling in excess of 90 miles per hour on a winding, foggy rural road leading up to the crash. The last recorded data from the vehicle indicated it was traveling around 80 mph just before it careened off the road and flipped into a field.
“I’m ready to accept the consequences of my actions,” Larrabee said during a tearful statement to the judge, during which she apologized repeatedly to Wiley’s family. She said she “lost a great and amazing childhood friend” because of her decisions, but that Wiley’s family lost more.
After her release, Larrabee said she would like to go to school, find work, and become a productive person.
“I want to find light in all the darkness,” Larrabee said.
Larrabee also will be required to do 100 hours of community service during her probation. She told the judge she may offer to speak with area students about the consequences of drug and alcohol use.
Follow Nick McCrea on Twitter at @nmccrea213.