Julie Henderson said May 9, 2017 was the first time in 18 years and 3 months she did not know where her son Justin was.
That evening, Justin Henderson was one of five people killed in a two-car crash when Matthew Carrier, of Fentron, drove a Subaru Impreza through a stop sign striking a Cadillac CTS. The Subaru was traveling about 100 mph.
Carrier, 23, pleaded no contest to five counts of second degree murder on Aug. 24. Carrier does not contest the facts of the case but stated that he does not remember the crash.
Friday afternoon he was sentenced to 32½ to 60 years in prison by Livingston County Circuit Court Judge Michael Hatty. He had faced up to life in prison.
Justin Henderson's mom, Julie speaks to the court on Oct. 19, 2018. (Photo: Kayla Daugherty)
The May 2017 collision killed all three passengers in the Cadillac, Candice Lynn Dunn, 35, of Oakland County; her mother Linda K. Hurley, 69, of Macomb County; and her mother's boyfriend, Jerome Joseph Tortomasi, 73, also of Macomb County. The driver of the Cadillac and Dunn's boyfriend, Albert Boswell, were hospitalized.
Two passengers in the Subaru, Justin Andrew-Humberto Henderson, 18, and Preston Tyler Wetzel, 24, both of Fenton, also were killed. The Subaru was owned by Henderson. Carrier and a third passenger, Kyle Eugene Lixie, were hospitalized following the crash.
The families of all five victims spoke in the courtroom Friday afternoon. Henderson's younger sister wrote a letter her mom read in court. "You, Matthew, killed one of the big things that make me happy. It's your fault he's gone."
Albert Boswell, 40, testified he was driving the Cadillac – in which his girlfriend, her mother and her mother’s boyfriend were riding – after attending an event where Candice Dunn was honored as Oakland County Probation Officer of the Year.
Albert Boswell, the driver of the Cadillac and boyfriend of Candace Dunn spoke during the sentencing of Matthew Jordan Carrier on Oct. 19, 2018. (Photo: Kayla Daugherty)
Friday he told Carrier "You took out the one person, that had you not done this and it was not fatal, would have helped you."
Boswell described his and Candice Dunn's relationship as something so strong it could "only be broken by a car driving 100 miles per hour through it."
Dunn's sister Michelle, whose last name was not audible in court, spoke on behalf of not only her sister but her mother, Linda Hurley.
She said that her mom decided to stay in school so she would not be a statistic of teenage pregnancy. "She wasn't going to be a statistic... little did she know she would end up being one anyway."
Michelle said she and her family had attended the ceremony where Dunn was honored that night. They eventually learned Dunn was killed within 40 minutes of her acceptance speech.
"You, Matthew are a murderer. Ignorance is no excuse," Michelle said to Carrier.
Preston Wetzel's family spoke in court Friday Oct. 19, 2018 during Matthew Carrier's sentencing. (Photo: Kayla Daugherty)
Hatty also heard from the families of Jerome Tortomasi and Preston Wetzel.
Tortomasi's son, also named Jerome, said he wrote a song about his father's death. He read the first sentence which reads, "What would I say if you were here before me, I was never able to say goodbye."
Wetzel's brother Brendan Wetzel spoke on behalf of the family. He told the court that he was the one who first was notified about the crash, and he was the one who had to call the rest of his family and tell them the news.
Brendan Wetzel's voice broke when he talked about police needing his brother's dental records to identify his body.
"He (Carrier) did not only take five lives but a piece of everyone here," Brendan said.
Carrier spoke before receiving his sentence. "I was supposed to protect my friends that night and I failed."
"I wish there was another way to say I'm sorry," he said. "I'm sorry."
Prosecutors earlier said Carrier's blood alcohol level at the time of the crash was 0.15; Michigan law considers 0.08 and higher to be drunk driving.
Investigators said Carrier was driving the Subaru southbound on Argentine Road at 103 mph May 9, 2017 when he ran a stop sign at the intersection of M-59 and collided with a Cadillac CTS heading east on M-59.
Edward Beatty, a Hartland Township resident, was approaching the intersection after a shift at Thai Summit in Howell and jumped out of his truck to help after witnessing the crash.
Beatty previously testified he heard someone yelling as he approached the Subaru and spotted a male partway under the passenger side of the vehicle.
"He was hollering, 'Help me, don't let me die,'' Beatty said, noting he later learned the man was Matthew Carrier. "I just grabbed his arms and started pulling."
Beatty said the flames fully engulfed the car, causing the tires to explode, just as he got Carrier away from the vehicle.
Chance McKimmy, 20, who lives in Fenton, previously testified he and a friend were in the left turn lane on M-59 preparing to turn north onto Argentine when they saw a car approaching the intersection with no indication it would stop.
The Subaru, he said, was engulfed in flames 10-15 feet high.
Contact Kayla Daugherty at 517-552-2848 or kdaugherty@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @KayDaugherty92.
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