DUI death gets her 4 to 8 years

A MONTGOMERY COUNTY woman who was drunk and reading a text message when she struck and killed a teenager last year was sentenced to four to eight years in prison.

Sarah Ann Derstein drove into a group of boys walking along the shoulder of the road, killing Dennis Kee, 15, and injuring another teen. Prosecutors said she fled but later returned to talk with police, and her blood-alcohol level was found to be more than twice the legal limit for driving.

Derstein, 32, of Lansdale, wept as she apologized in court to the victim's relatives.

Derstein pleaded guilty last fall to homicide by vehicle, accidents involving bodily injury and driving under the influence in the April crash on Route 309 in Hatfield Township. In exchange for her plea, other charges such as reckless endangering and reckless driving were dropped.

Assistant District Attorney Jordan Friter sought a stiff sentence, calling Derstein a "human missile capable of destroying anything in her path" that night.

- Associated Press