Driver sentenced to 12 years in prison in fatal 2023 drunken driving crash in Warren County
ALLAMUCHY TOWNSHIP, N.J. (Warren County) — A man who admitted driving while intoxicated in a 2023 crash that killed a woman in Allamuchy Township has been sentenced to 12 years in New Jersey State Prison, the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office announced.
On Thursday, Warren County Superior Court Judge Reema Sethi Kareer sentenced Andrzej Szyszko to 12 years in prison on a first-degree aggravated manslaughter conviction, seven years for second-degree death by auto and 18 months on each of two fourth-degree counts of assault by auto. All sentences will run concurrently.
Under New Jersey’s No Early Release Act, Szyszko must serve 85% of his sentence before becoming eligible for parole. His New Jersey driving privileges also were suspended for five years, in addition to mandatory fines.
Szyszko pleaded guilty on May 21 to one count each of aggravated manslaughter and death by auto, along with two counts of assault by auto.
The charges stem from a Nov. 22, 2023, three-vehicle crash at the intersection of County Route 517 and Ridge Road in Allamuchy Township. According to investigators, troopers from the New Jersey State Police Hope Station determined Szyszko was operating his vehicle while intoxicated and caused the crash, which resulted in the death of Lauren Gerhold.
The Warren County Prosecutor’s Office also recognized the New Jersey State Police Hope Station, the New Jersey State Police Fatal Accident Unit and the New Jersey State Police Laboratory for their investigative work.
