RI man gets 2 years for ATV death
Published: September 22, 2009
Updated: September 22, 2009
WARWICK, R.I.—A Coventry man who left his severely injured passenger on the side of the road after he flipped the all-terrain vehicle they were on has been sentenced to two years in prison.
The woman died nine days later.
Gregory Hebert was also sentenced to eight years of probation and ordered by a judge to perform 500 hours of community service. He will face no further loss of license upon his release.
The 24-year-old Hebert pleaded no contest to driving to endanger, death resulting. A charge of leaving the scene of an accident, death resulting, was dismissed under the plea agreement.
Authorities say Hebert was operating an ATV at a party in June 2007 with Ashley Phelps, 21, on the back. The vehicle struck some mailboxes and rolled over.
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rhodeislander hit that one squarely on the head. There is very little difference at all.
I think we all agree….sadly there are no ‘foreseeable’ consequences attached to many things in this state and as we’ve seen time and again it is rarely the person responsible who loses their life—it is the person sitting next to them. It’s interesting from a historical perspective the ATV kid Hebert was really not much different than Ted Kennedy and MaryJo. . . .
I didn’t want to seem to argue either, rhodeislander. And you’re right—the ‘slap on the wrist’ justice is the fault of the state.
Consider this though—there are laws on the books that shouldn’t have ever been made into a law—and there are people in jail—not too many, but some—because of those ‘protective’ laws. Then in a case like this one, the law suddenly is too strict and the sentences too lax? I’ve said it before—the system is broken—and ‘we the people’ are next to powerless to fix it.
sorry rhodeislander, I think that in text, the tone is sometimes lost. I didn’t mean to come across as antagonistic. We agree on the crux of this issue. Age has become an excuse, too often, for bad behavior. That was my only other point, we are truly on the same side.
hey. you guys. i’m on your side here. why does it seem so antagonistic? my first post lists that he screwed up. while screw up may not be a strong enough term for this i thought the content and meaning of my post was quite clear. my second posts corrects his age to 22. no i guess he’s not a kid but again…i didn’t post to argue. i posted to say this state does a terrible job with enforcing any sense of punishment for reckless behavior. i guess i should have just said that instead. . .‘our state does a bad job’.
I know that rhodeislander wasn’t defending Greenburg, Lawn.
Thank God for that. My point is that even at 22, you are not a “kid”. Can I accept that panic may have played a part in him leaving the victim on the side of the road? Doesn’t excuse it, but yes. Did wreckless behavior result in a death? You bet. But 22 is not a kid and 2 years for this crime is not enough. As long as this leniency continues, irresponsibility will continue too.
rhodeislander, yes, he screwed up real bad—BUT—many times here.
1. Not being careful, causing the accident
2. Not checking on his passenger
3. Not calling for help
4. Leaving the scene
Yes, he is going to be haunted for the rest of his life—but the woman’s life has ended—because of him. You can say he screwed up all you want. If the woman had been able to live a normal life, yes, a screw-up. BUT she died because of the guys actions/inactions. That goes beyond a ‘screw-up’.
....oh missed the 24 year old part…so he was 21 or at best 22 when it happened. still made a terrible decision but i am not sure in a state of panic what goes through someone’s head. one would hope that all of us when faced with such a thing would do the right thing—sadly with many of these ‘kids/young adults’ they are more worried about getting a DUI than someone being a DOA.
I dont think rhodeislander was defending ryan greenburg alkeryia. 
I’m sorry rhodeislander, but 24 is no kid. Maybe rolling the ATV was an accident; leaving her there was not. Another slap on the wrist, so we can’t wonder why this crap continues.
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