19-year-old Buckley woman sentenced to 7 years for crash that killed Puyallup pastor

TACOMA -- A 19-year-old Buckley woman who had pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide in the death of a pastor last year was sentenced Friday to seven years in prison.

James had entered her guilty plea last month in the death of Pastor Eric Renz of Puyallup.

Eric Renz

As part of her plea, James admitted she was impaired by drugs when she ran a stop sign and hit Renz last November. Court records show she told police she had taken an anti-depressant and smoked marijuana before the crash.

The 66-year-old man died about two weeks later. He had served as a pastor in Presbyterian churches throughout the Puget Sound region and was active in the Freezing Nights campaign, which provides shelter and meals to homeless people during the winter.

The News Tribune of Tacoma reported (http://bit.ly/1IPT2X0) that James told the court at her sentencing Friday, “I will always carry this heavy burden of guilt, regret and sorrow for what I have done."

But Pierce County Superior Court Judge Stanley Rumbaugh added six months of time to the sentence recommended by the prosecutor.

“In the end, it does boil down to your terrible choice to use drugs and drive,” the judge said.