Connellsville man sentenced
A 72-year-old Connellsville man will spend the holidays with his family and then report to prison to begin serving a one to two-year sentence for homicide by vehicle. Charles E. LaPorte was sentenced Wednesday before Fayette County Judge John F. Wagner Jr., but will not report to prison until Jan. 6 to begin serving his sentence.
The judge also sentenced LaPorte to 30 days to six months in prison for driving under the influence of alcohol in the Feb. 28 car accident that killed 39-year-old Carla Primus.
Primus was the passenger in a car driven by her husband, Jeffrey, along Route 119 when LaPorte’s vehicle hit theirs. Police charged that LaPorte had a blood-alcohol content of .14 percent when he hit the Primus’ vehicle.
In addition to serving jail time, LaPorte also agreed to forfeit his $90,000 211 Frisbee Avenue home to Jeffrey Primus as compensation.
First Trial Assistant District Attorney Joseph M. George Jr. said the commonwealth had come to that agreement with LaPorte and his attorney Thomas Bowlen as part of the plea in the case.
At sentencing, Wagner said he could not sentence LaPorte to forfeit his home because such an action is not warranted under the criminal code.
“I don’t have the authority to do that,” said Wagner.
However, he asked an attorney privately representing Primus if there was some civil paperwork in place to assure the home would be turned over. When the attorney said that there was, Wagner continued with the sentencing.
LaPorte also formerly agreed to testify in Primus’s favor in any civil action against the bar at which he drank before the accident.
The judge noted that LaPorte’s sentence was in the mitigated range, meaning that it was within the lowest amount of time allowed.
In sentencing that way, Wagner said he took into consideration LaPorte’s age and existing health conditions as well as the consent of the Primus family in the lesser sentence. Bowlen said at a prior hearing that LaPorte suffers from arthritis, heart problems and high blood pressure.
Once LaPorte is released from prison he will have his license suspended for one year for the DUI conviction. Once his license is restored, LaPorte will have to participate in the Interlock Program for one year. The program forces those convicted of drunken driving to take a breathalyzer-type test before starting their vehicle.
Police initially charged LaPorte with vehicular homicide while DUI, but as part of the plea agreement, prosecutors agreed to dismiss that charge.