Salem man gets 7 to 18 years in prison
BY DARRELL HALEN
A Salem man was sentenced to spend seven to 18 years in prison for his role in a drunk-driving crash in Windham that claimed the life a young woman and injured her two passengers.
Jack Webb, 54, pleaded guilty to three felony charges, including negligent homicide, during an emotional three-hour hearing in Rockingham County Superior Court on Nov. 15.
Webb’s blood alcohol level was almost three times the legal limit when his pickup truck crossed the center line on Route 111 in Windham on Oct. 30, 2005, and struck the car being driven by Katelyn Contraros head-on.
Contraros, a 19-year-old Derry resident, died from severe injuries the following day.
“I never knew Katelyn, but those of you who knew her and loved her have painted me a picture of a young woman whose vibrant spirit was even more beautiful than her photograph,” Judge Patricia Coffey told her family and friends. “Just as she loved her sunshine bear, it is clear to me she was your sunshine. And that evening just over a year ago, your sunshine was eclipsed by a terrible tragedy.”
Coffey sentenced Webb to five-to-10 years in prison on the negligent homicide charge. In addition, Webb received a sentence of one to four years each on two counts of second degree assault for injuring the two passengers.
As part of the plea agreement, prosecutors dropped three charges of reckless conduct.
Assistant County Attorney Patricia Conway said that according to a forensics report, Webb consumed between eight and 12 beers before the crash.
“There is simply no excuse for drinking and getting behind the wheel of a car, and there is absolutely no excuse for being as drunk as you were,” Coffey told Webb when the judge gave him the maximum sentence under a capped plea agreement. “There has to be a message of deterrence sent not just to you but to the community at large. People in New Hampshire don’t drive drunk and get a slap on the wrist.”
Many people in the packed courtroom wore pink ribbons that said, “Katelyn we miss u.” Several cried or wiped tears from their eyes during the hearing.
Friends and relatives of Katelyn described the young woman as a fun and caring person who made people feel special.
“She was a loving person,” said Katelyn’s mother, Debbie Contraros.
“Katelyn’s smile was infectious and her vitality and her zest for life was obvious to all,” said Francis Russell, Katelyn’s former boss, who managed a carousel in a Salem mall at which Katelyn worked.
Several people said Katelyn saved the life of her passengers, Marcel Morel and Peter Giuffre, because she jerked her steering wheel when Webb crossed into her path. Morel said Katelyn “will always be my angel.”
Throughout the hearing, people told Coffey of the pain and suffering Webb had caused. Giuffre said he is still haunted by the crash.
“My family is changed now, changed forever,” said Paula Jarek, Katelyn’s aunt, who pleaded for Coffey to give Webb the maximum sentence. “Every day we think of Katelyn. We cry often. Every day there is pain and sorrow mere words can not describe.”
Several friends of Webb described him as charitable and goodhearted. Steve Shepard told Coffey that Webb’s good works in the community included helping send underprivileged kids to camp and providing food baskets to needy families.
“He thinks not of himself but of those around him who need help,” Shepard said. “Doesn’t matter if its family, a friend or even a stranger.”
Before being sentenced, Webb expressed remorse for the pain he had caused.
“It’s something I think about every day … I made a horrendous decision,” Webb said. “As much as I would like to make it go away, to make it to have not happened, I know that’s not possible … I am deeply, deeply sorry for what I’ve done.”