Sussex County Man Sentenced to 6 Months for Dui Crash That Killed Teen Driver Days Before Graduation

RDL – Sussex County Man Sentenced to 6 Months for Dui Crash That Killed Teen Driver Days Before Graduation

The authorities announced on Monday that a man from Sussex County who acknowledged to driving under the influence of alcohol when his pickup truck collided with an SUV, resulting in the death of a teenage driver just days before graduation, was sentenced to six months in jail.

According to the Sussex County Prosecutor’s Office, Brian Weiss, 45, of Wantage, was sentenced on December 13, 2024, after pleading guilty to third-degree strict liability vehicular murder for the accident that resulted in the death of Jonathan Fett, 18, also of Wantage.

During the collision that took place on June 13, 2021, between the SUV that Weiss was driving and Fett’s vehicle, the prosecutor stated that Weiss had a blood-alcohol content level of.14%. In the state of New Jersey, the permissible limit for driving is 0.08%.

At approximately 1:30 in the morning, Weiss, who was headed north on Route 519, collided with the driver side of Fett’s vehicle as he was traveling west on Route 650 in Wantage. Fett was on his way to see a buddy whose car had broken down in Montague.

According to a report by NorthJersey.com, authorities discovered that Fett neglected to stop at a stop sign, which was a contributing factor in the accident.

Drivers are held criminally accountable under the state’s strict liability vehicular homicide legislation if they are under the influence of alcohol or drugs and are engaged in an accident that results in death, regardless of whether or not they were careless and caused the accident.

According to the documents filed with the court, Weiss entered a guilty plea to the criminal offense, as well as to operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and to exceeding the speed limit by 14 miles per hour.

In addition to serving time in jail, Weiss was ordered to pay fines totaling more than $1,700, do thirty days of community service, participate in the Intoxicated Driver Program in the state of New Jersey, and have an interlock ignition device professionally put in his car for a period of five years, as stated in the court records.

Although Fett was born in Hackensack, he had lived in Wantage for his entire life. He was a senior at Sussex County Technical School, and he was set to graduate during the week that we were involved in the accident.

After graduating from high school, Fett, who was the oldest of four children, had the ambition to join the United States Marine Corps.

Reference: Man sentenced to 6 months in jail after DWI crash killed N.J. teen days before graduation