NJ driver admits DWI after crash killed child, 8, napping in parked car

🔴 NJ man admits to deadly crash
🔴 Driver was drunk, speeding
🔴 Boy killed in parked car

A 26-year-old man has admitted to a drunken, high-speed crash that killed an 8-year-old boy who was asleep in a parked car in Atlantic County.

Last week, Edward Johnston, of Egg Harbor City, pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter for causing the death of young Javier Velez on July 23, 2023.

Johnston was drunk and speeding at roughly 107 miles per hour westbound on the White Horse Pike, also known as Route 30, when his vehicle veered off course in Absecon.

He crashed into the rear of a parked 1995 Honda, where the boy was sleeping.

The victim’s father and brother were just outside the vehicle, ending a fishing outing, police said.

Johnston will be sentenced on May 13 in Superior Court in Atlantic County.

Under a plea deal, Johnston is expected to receive 15 years in prison.

Of that term, he must serve more than 12 years before becoming eligible for parole.

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