Rene Berben, 26, of the Stonybrook Apartments in Deptford, pleaded guilty Monday to third degree assault by auto and driving under the influence. Berben was enlisted in the U.S. Army at the time of the crash and is being discharged.
Prosecutors say Berben admitted having ten or more drinks at Taylor's Bar in Williamstown, N.J. and had a blood-alcohol level of .342 the night of March 19, 2011.
That's when prosecutors say Berben, driving his Ford truck northbound on Route 41, turned left into an oncoming Nissan sedan driven by 29-year-old Steven Kennedy of Runnemede.
Kennedy was killed. Passengers Elisha Bailey, 52, and Dwayne Pettit, 28, both of Glassboro, sustained non-life threatening injuries.
In a statement, Gloucester County Prosecutor Sean Dalton said, "This is another senseless tragedy that could easily have been avoided by not getting behind the wheel or by calling a friend or taxi to come pick you up."
Under the plea agreement announced Monday by prosecutors, Berben will be sentenced to six years in New Jersey state prison. He will be ineligible for parole for 85 percent of the prison term.
In addition, Berben will serve a one-year concurrent sentence for assault. He will also lose his driver's license for seven months and pay a $300 fine for the DUI conviction.
