Man Faces 15 Years In Fatal, Drunken Boat Crash Near Harsens Island
PORT HURON (WWJ/AP) - A man who was drinking before causing a boat crash that killed two people near Harsens Island is returning to court for his sentence.
Brandon Verfaillie pleaded guilty in December to operating a vessel while intoxicated--causing death and operating a vessel while intoxicated--causing serious injury. The 32-year-old is due back in court Tuesday in front of St. Clair County Judge Michael West.
Verfaillie was operating a 25-foot speedboat that crashed into a cabin cruiser on the South Channel of the St. Clair River last August.
Two people on the cabin cruiser, 57-year-old Robert Koontz of Chesterfield Township and 68-year-old Nancy Axford of Winnipeg, Manitoba, were killed in the crash. Three others on the cabin cruiser were injured.
No injuries were sustained by Verfaillie or his two passengers.
Michigan State Police found Verfaillie's blood alcohol content was 0.105 shortly after the crash. At the time, the legal limit on water was 0.10. (It has since been lowered to .08)
The maximum penalty is 15 years in prison.
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