Man high on Adderall in double fatal crash on NJ Turnpike sentenced to 37 years
JERSEY CITY, New Jersey (WABC) -- A driver who was high on amphetamines when he caused a crash that killed a father and daughter on the New Jersey Turnpike has been sentenced to more than 35 years behind bars.
There was grief, sorrow and despair in the courtroom Thursday as friends and family came and poured out their pain.
Pam O'Donnell, a cancer survivor and mother, lost half of her family in the blink of an eye.
Her 5-year-old daughter Bridget and husband Timothy were killed in a horrific crash on February 22, 2016.
Pam spoke with passion and pain, saying the emotional anguish she is suffering may never stop.
"Every time I cry, it's never-ending," she told the court. "Our child dies all over again every moment we wake up. Our child dies again every moment they are not here with us, for the rest of our lives."
Pam recalls the last conversation she had with Bridget on her 99th day of pre-K, when the 5-year-old learned the letter "p."
"She asked me to print out a picture of myself to show what the letter 'p' represented. I printed out that picture, but I never had a chance to give it to her," Pam said.
She added that the pain has really taken a toll on her younger daughter, Ally, who is now alone.
She said the O'Donnells had a second child so they would always have each other.
As Pam was sharing her story, 39-year-old Scott Hahn of Hamilton Township, who was convicted in March of aggravated manslaughter, death by auto, and possession of a controlled dangerous substance, stared into space.
Hahn admitted he had taken 10 Adderall pills and gone more than a day without sleep when he crashed at Interchange 14C in Jersey City.
He finally did address the courtroom on Thursday, pleading and sharing his own grief.
"I beg for mercy. I beg for leniency," he said. "I'm not a monster."
Hahn could have been sentenced to up to 65 years behind bars. The judge instead decided to sentence him to 37 years in prison.
He won't be eligible for parole until he serves at least 85 percent of that time.
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