PARIS — A 21-year old Oxford woman found to be responsible for the deaths of two West Paris teens in a high-speed car crash two years ago will be sentenced Wednesday.
Prosecutors are asking a judge to order Oxford resident Kristina Lowe to five years behind bars following a jury’s conviction on two counts of manslaughter in the deaths of Logan Dam, 19, and Rebecca Mason, 16.
Lowe will be sentenced at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 1, in Oxford County Superior Court.
Assistant District Attorneys Richard Beauchesne and Joseph O’Connor are seeking two concurrent 10-year sentences for each manslaughter conviction with all but five years suspended, as well as an additional five-year sentence — the maximum for the felony charge — for leaving the scene of an accident, all suspended.
Witnesses during the trial said Lowe was speeding, reading a text message and impaired when the car she was driving drifted off Route 219 in West Paris on Jan. 7, 2012.
Prosecutors are not seeking the maximum sentence for the manslaughter convictions — 30 years for each count — because Lowe has no prior convictions or arrests since her arraignment and was found not guilty of operating under the influence of alcohol.
Clifford later denied a motion for a new case or mistrial after ruling that the jury did not return an inconsistent verdict and was correct in assessing each charge individually.
In their sentencing memorandum, James Howaniec and defense attorney Chelsea Peters asked Active-Retired Justice Robert Clifford to forgo incarceration in favor of community service, arguing a prison sentence would bring little benefit to society.
Heightened security during the trial is expected.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
