Drunk driver pleads guilty in deadly crash

A man from central Alberta has been sentenced to five years for driving drunk and killing his girlfriend on the side of a road. Jason John Powell, who is 41, pleaded guilty at the start of his trial in Red Deer to charges of impaired driving causing death, refusing to provide a breath sample and disqualified driving. Court heard Powell was in a rocky relationship with 41-year-old Chasity Holman, and went to pick her up from her job in Penhold in November 2015. She refused the ride because he had been drinking, then started walking along the shoulder of a road. Powell struck her while going 78 km/h. The sentencing judge, pointing out that Powell has two prior convictions for impaired driving, also handed him a 10-year driving prohibition upon his release from prison.