Drunken driver gets 4 years in prison for '05 crash

LISBON -- Judge David Tobin of Columbiana County Common Pleas Court sentenced an East Palestine man to four years in prison for his part in an accident that injured four people.
George E. Faulkner, 40, of state Route 14, had pleaded guilty to a charge of aggravated vehicular assault.
Faulkner was driving a large pickup truck on Township Line Road in Unity Township late May 29, 2005. He drove into the intersection with state Route 14, and his vehicle collided with a van. People in the vehicle with Faulkner at the time of the accident told him to stop before he went into the intersection.
Ann M. Murphy, then 11, and her parents and brother, all from Freedom, Pa., were in the van. They all suffered injuries.
John Gamble, an assistant county prosecutor, said Friday that Ann's injuries were the most serious. He said the girl had head injuries that could cause seizures the rest of her life.
Faulkner had a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.26, more than three times the amount to be considered driving while intoxicated. Gamble said Faulkner's only other record was two previous convictions for driving while under the influence.
Faulkner has a host of medical problems, including high blood pressure and diabetes. Faulkner apologized to Ann and the other family members before he was sentenced.
Judge Tobin also suspended Faulkner's driver's license for 10 years.