Ex-NASA astronaut who killed two sisters, aged 11 and 13, in fatal crash when he rear-ended the car they were in after he spent hours drinking in a motel room is sentenced to four years in prison
Former NASA space shuttle commander James Halsell Jr. caused a horrific car accident in his native Alabama that killed two young sisters back in 2016
Halsell was initially indicted on reckless murder charges at the time of the crash after refusing a blood-alcohol test
The former astronaut ultimately pleaded guilty to reduced charges on Thursday
While Halsell was originally facing a decades-long prison sentence, an Alabama judge agreed to just a four-year sentence with 10 years probation
Former Astronaut Pleads Guilty To Manslaughter In Death Of Two Girls, Gets Four Years
“My daughters were amazing, beautiful, smart, strong little girls that could have been anything in this world if they had the opportunity to grow up, but that was taken from me and all of everyone else in this world,” the mother of 11-year-old Niomi Deona James and 13-year-old Jayla Latrick Parler said after the plea. James Halsell Jr. Photo: AP
A former Alabama astronaut pleaded guilty to manslaughter and assault in the death of two young girls and will spend 4 years behind bars, but the victims’ family has argued that the plea deal “wasn’t justice.”
Huntsville astronaut, former Space Shuttle commander pleads guilty in deaths of 2 girls
Jim Halsell Jr
Posted: May 27, 2021 1:06 PM
Updated: May 27, 2021 2:39 PM
Posted By: Josh Rayburn, Stephen Gallien
Former Astronaut and Space Shuttle Commander Col. Jim Halsell Jr. pleaded guilty Thursday to manslaughter and assault for his involvement in a 2016 wreck that killed two girls.
He had originally been charged with reckless murder.
The wreck took place on Highway 82 in Tuscaloosa County. Niomi Deona James, 11, and Jayla Latrick Parler, 13, were killed in the crash.
Halsell was sentenced to serve four years in prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release.
He immediately was taken into custody Thursday and placed in the Tuscaloosa County jail.
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) A former NASA space shuttle commander indicted on reckless murder charges in the traffic deaths of two girls pleaded guilty to reduced charges Thursday nearly five years aft
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