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Buffalo, NY (WBEN) Back in November, two women were killed, a man was seriously injured after a drunk motorcyclist plowed into them along a bike path in Amherst. Today, the driver who pleaded guilty, David Smith, learns his sentence.
Deanna Russo of Crusade Against Impaired Driving has been through this before. She spoke before a judge against the drunk driver of the car that killed her sister Karen Kwiatkowski 15 years ago this month. "The more people speak to the judge and tell Judge Penny Wolfgang about the impact of these people on their lives and what it's been like since they were gone, that's very important. The more people speak the better." Russo says wild horses couldn't keep her from speaking about her sister at her killer's sentencing.
To that end, Crusade Against Impaired Driving learned the sister of Jocelyn Elberson lives out of town and needed help to be in Buffalo for the sentencing. Russo says CAID helped that woman out by paying for her airfare so she could be in attendance.
Russo hopes for an appropriate sentence. "This person not only took these lives, but had all these priors before this," says Russo. Smith faces up to 5 to 15 years in prison.