(Mankato, Mn.)– A Minnesota man made a tearful plea for leniency before a judge sentenced him to just over four years in prison for a crash that killed two people, including a Lakefield woman.
24-year-old Mark Chalin of Mankato sobbed Monday as he said he’d trade his life for the lives of victims “in a heartbeat”.
The August 2011 crash killed his girlfriend, 23-year-old Amber Menzes, and the other driver, 35-year-old Jonna Martin of Lakefield. Witnesses had said that Menzes was having sex with Chalin while he was driving before the crash.
The courtroom was dead silent when Judge Bradley Walker handed down a sentence of 50 months, with the possibility of supervised release after about three years. He implored everyone present to think about how someone’s life can change in an instant. (From the Associated Press).
