Victor Critelli will not be able to drive a car again.
Victor T. CritelliPALMER - An 87-year-old Springfield man plead guilty to a reduced charge of negligent motor vehicle operation Tuesday in Palmer District Court after he struck and killed an 87-year-old man in East Longmeadow as he was walking to the Donut Dip restaurant.
Victor T. Critelli will not be able to drive a car again. He also will be on probation for two years, and must pay a $65 per month probation fee and a $50 victim witness fee. He appeared before Judge Jacklyn M. Connly with his court-appointed lawyer, Thomas D. O'Connor.
Police said Critelli was pulling out of the Donut Dip at 648 North Main St. when he struck Frederick Carney, 87, also of Springfield, in May 2010. Critelli was originally charged with motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation, but the charge was changed after a plea agreement with the prosecution.
O'Connor said the accident affected his client, who was extremely remorseful about what happened, and received psychiatric care after the accident. Critelli said after that he had suicidal thoughts, and is very sorry.
Carney's daughter, Kathi Carney, of Enfield, read victim witness impact statements in court about how the family has dealt with the death of her father. She said her father and mother, Violet, had known each other since they were 14, and that her mother is now left alone, without her soul mate.
"You name it, we did it together," Violet Carney wrote in her victim witness impact statement.
Violet Carney did not attend the court proceeding.
She said her father, a World War II veteran and recipient of a Bronze Star, had just dropped off his wife at a hair salon and was walking to get a cup of coffee at the Donut Dip when he was hit. Carney described her father as "an extraordinary gentlemen," who was active and vibrant.
Carney said her father was there for her when her 18-year-old son, Scott Allen, was killed in a car accident nine years ago, and helped her with a scholarship created in his name. She said her father also leaves behind his son Bill, six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Bill Carney described his father as his "best friend and a teacher" in his statement.
Carney said family members need to watch their elders, and know when it's time to take their driver's license away. The family initially was seeking prison time for Critelli, but changed their stance, she said.
At the end of the court proceeding, Critelli and Carney were able to talk to each other.
"He is so sorry and so remorseful. I'm just grateful that he is remorseful . . . This has plagued him for a year as well," Carney said.
O'Connor said Critelli is a Navy veteran. He also said he had a difficult childhood and raised two sons alone.