Mar 22, 2024 By Mike Jones 2 min read

A South Strabane man who was drunk when he crashed his car in Greene County nearly two years ago, killing one passenger and injuring two others, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to serve time in prison.

Corey Tyler Wilson, 29, pleaded guilty Tuesday in Greene County Court to homicide by vehicle, aggravated assault by vehicle and driving under the influence, and was immediately sentenced by President Judge Lou Dayich to serve three to six years in a state prison.

Cumberland Township police said Wilson had a blood-alcohol level of .179% shortly after the early-morning crash on June 19, 2022, that killed 21-year-old Jennah Whipkey of Carmichaels. Wilson and another passenger, Rece Hennerman, were seriously injured in the crash and taken to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, W.Va., for treatment.

Police said Wilson drove off the roadway and crashed into a tree in the 200 block of Rutters Lane near Carmichaels. Wilson and his passengers had just left the Jessop Boat Club after a night of drinking, and alcohol also had been found inside the vehicle, according to investigators.

Neither Whipkey nor Hennerman was wearing a seat belt, and both were thrown around in the backseat when the vehicle left the road and slammed into two trees. Whipkey died at the scene from blunt force trauma to her head and neck. Another passenger in the car, Matthew Nemec, was wearing a seat belt and not seriously injured.

Wilson was charged Oct. 31, 2022, and has been free on $50,000 bond while the case proceeded through the courts. He is expected to report to the Greene County sheriff’s office on April 9, and he will be taken into the state Department of Corrections system for booking to determine where he’ll serve his sentence.

Wilson’s defense attorney, Jeremy Davis, could not be reached for comment Thursday, while the state Attorney General’s office, which prosecuted the case, declined to comment on the case.