A
Lihue man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in a 2011
traffic crash that caused the death of his 14-month-old infant.
On
Wednesday, Jan. 30, Michael Pagelsdorf Jr., 30, pleaded guilty to
Negligent Homicide in the First Degree, a class B felony, and was ordered to
immediately begin serving his sentence.
On
February 20, 2011, Pagelsdorf was driving eastbound on Kaumualii Highway in
Lihue with his infant in his lap. He looked down for a second and when he
looked up, he was unable to stop his vehicle from crashing into the vehicle
that was stopped in front of him. The airbag in Pagelsdorf's vehicle deployed,
causing fatal injuries to the infant.
Pagelsdorf
had methamphetamine and marijuana in his blood at the time of the crash and was
driving on a suspended license.
"This
was a terrible tragedy, and one that was completely avoidable," said
Prosecuting Attorney Justin F. Kollar. "Mr. Pagelsdorf made the conscious
decision to remove the infant from the child safety seat, and he will have to
live with the consequences of that decision for the rest of his life. My hope
is that others learn from this mistake and avoid repeating it."
During an exclusive interview in 2011
Pagelsdorf Jr. told Hawaii News Now, "I
take full responsibility for everything," he said. "Whatever comes my
way is going to come."
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