BOSTON, Sept. 12, 2014—A Stoughton man was sentenced to state prison today after admitting that he was driving drunk when he crashed his car and killed his passenger, 20-year-old Evan Bard, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.
SEAN E. JACKMAN (D.O.B. 1/18/89) pleaded guilty to a charge of motor vehicle homicide while operating under the influence of alcohol during an appearance today in Norfolk Superior Court. At the recommendation of Assistant District Attorney Melissa Brooks of the DA’s Major Felony Bureau, Norfolk Superior Court Judge Kenneth J. Fishman sentenced him to three to five years in prison.
In addition to hearing from members of Bard’s immediate family, Fishman received some 40 pages of statements from members of her extended family, the Curry College community of which she was a part, and dozens of friends and co-workers. Each and every one recalled a kind, compassionate, vibrant, and beloved young woman with a promising future as a nurse.
Had the case proceeded to trial, Brooks would have presented evidence and testimony to prove that Jackman was driving his 1995 Toyota Camry in the area of Bolivar Street in Canton when he struck a tree at approximately 11:50 p.m. on May 10, 2013. Bard, an Agawam resident sitting in the car’s passenger seat, was fatally injured in the crash.
Jackman was transported to Boston Medical Center for treatment of his injuries. Canton Fire Department who transported him to the hospital could detect the odor of alcohol coming from him, as could Canton Police officers who responded to the single-vehicle crash, Brooks said.
At the request of Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey, the Suffolk DA’s office prosecuted Jackman’s case to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest. Jackman was a 2006 summer intern at the Norfolk DA’s office and a relative had previously been employed there.
Jackman was represented by attorney Daniel O’Malley.
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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
