An Owego woman was sentenced in court today on charges of first degree vehicular manslaughter and DWI. 20-year-old Kari Bensley was the drunk driver of the SUV that crashed on Montrose Turnpike in Owego last August, killing 18-year-old Viviana Peña and 23-year-old David Ammerman. Bensley admitted that the three had been at a party and were drinking on the night of the accident. The vehicle crashed when going around a sharp curve.
On the vehicular manslaughter charge, Tioga County Judge Vincent Squeglia handed down a 6-month sentence in the Tioga County Jail, and 5 years probation, as well as restitution which will be determined at a later court hearing. She also surrendered her driver’s license and was sentenced to 3 years of concurrent probation for the DWI charge. The Judge warned that if Bensley violated her probation, she could be sentenced to an additional 5-15 years in jail.
