Missoula Woman Receives Four Years

A 31-year-old Missoula woman who pleaded guilty to negligent vehicular homicide in a hit-and-run crash that killed a man who was riding his scooter home from work has been sentenced to four years in prison without parole.

District Judge John Larson sentenced Traci LaJoie on Tuesday for the May 17, 2010, death of 54-year-old Fred Andrew Emery on Highway 10 near the Missoula International Airport.

Prosecutors say LaJoie had about five drinks before she hit Emery, a pastor who had 15 children.

The Missoulian reports Larson rejected an agreement that called for two years in prison, but LaJoie decided to stick with her plea.

Her attorney, John Smith, said Wednesday that Emery "obviously was a wonderful person who was a good man who clearly walked the walk."

Story from The Associated Press