COURT CASE STORY – You are writing a hard news story for tomorrow’s ER.  Use inverted pyramid, blind summary lead and hard news style.

Facts of crime, which occurred August 6:

• Troy Lee Hovey, 37, former sprint car racing driver, was driving drunk (police report)
  • He was going between 60 to 80 mph on The Esplanade
  • Crashed through a wooden barrier
  • Started driving northbound in the southbound lane on Highway 99
  • All occurred at about 9 pm
• Forced one car off  HWY 99, (police report)
  • Hovey then collided head-on with Amit Tandon's catering truck
  • Tandon, 32, owned Guzzetti’s Catering and Indian Food
  • Tandon was killed
  • Another individual, driving a vehicle behind Tandon, suffered minor injuries
  • Hovey was nearly 3x the legal limit
• On August 28, Hovey had pleaded no contest to:
• A felony charge of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated
• Driving with more than .08 percent of alcohol in his system
• This could have carried from four to 10 years in prison.

The case concluded today with a sentencing hearing:

• Heard by Butte County Superior Court Judge Robert Glusman
• Deputy district attorney Glenn Jennings represented the state
• Defense attorney Jodea Foster, representing Hovey, asked for a light sentence
• Testimony about both the victim and perpetrator was read or spoken
  • About Tandon:
    • Left pregnant widow, Deepika Tandon
    • The judge remembered buying food from him at the Thursday night market
    • Was well-known and liked in Chico
  • About Hovey
    • Father of 3
    • Lacked prior criminal record or
    • Lacked history of alcohol offenses
    • Used to have an overeating problem – got gastric-bypass surgery
    • Foster: Hovey rarely drank prior to the surgery
    • Foster: Hovey began to substitute alcohol for food
    • Foster: Hovey two times voluntarily admitted himself for treatment at Enloe's Behavioral Health Clinic; was in outpatient care at the time of crash
    • Showed obvious remorse
    • Demonstrated desire to overcome his current drinking problem
• Decision:
• Hovey placed on 3 yrs probation
• Hovey given 180 days in jail.
• Hovey must complete a 9-month DUI school
• Install an anti-alcohol interlocking device on his vehicle and will lose his license for one year.
• Reaction:
• Jennings said the ruling would send the wrong message.

QUOTES introduced during sentencing hearing:

Butte County Superior Court Judge Robert Glusman:

• "I know this won't happen again.  I expect Hovey to embrace recovery."
• "If I find you're drinking, I'll be the last person you want to see.  I presided over the DUI calendar in the past and have always sentenced harshly"
• “This is a difficult and heart-wrenching case"
• “Deepika Tandon’s letter is moving and eloquent.  My heart goes out to her.”

Hovey sent letter to wife of victim:

• "I have no excuses.  I wish words would somehow lessen your pain.”

Victim’s wife, Deepika Tandon addressed the court in a letter.  It included the following:

• "Troy Hovey is a murderer. He not only murdered my husband, he also murdered my dreams"
• "You stole a wonderful man not only from his family, but the entire community. He touched so many lives. He made Chico a better place to live."
• She also asks for the maximum ten year sentence for Hovey