A Florida court has handed down an 18-year prison sentence in the Krepps DUI manslaughter sentencing, after Terriny Krepps, 21, ran a red light while intoxicated and killed 60-year-old retired Navy veteran Kurt Kramer, who was driving three naval passengers home as an Uber driver.
Krepps pleaded guilty last week in Escambia County to DUI manslaughter, DUI causing serious bodily injury, and two misdemeanour counts of DUI causing damage to property or a person without serious injury, in connection with the collision on 29 June 2024.
The Crash at Gulf Beach Highway
The incident occurred just after 4 a.m. at the intersection of Gulf Beach Highway and North Navy Boulevard. Krepps drove her Hyundai Elantra into the passenger side of a Subaru Legacy driven by Kramer after failing to stop for a red light, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Kramer was transporting Cameron Montoya, Semaj Jones, and Quavon Brown back to Naval Air Station Pensacola. He died at the scene. Montoya suffered catastrophic injuries that resulted in his medical discharge from the Navy; Jones and Brown were also injured, the state attorney’s office said.
A motorist waiting at the same red light told troopers she watched the Hyundai enter the intersection without stopping. After the impact, she walked to Krepps’ vehicle and observed her crawl from the driver’s seat into the front passenger seat before emergency crews arrived.
Troopers found two 12-packs of Twisted Tea in the boot of the Hyundai and an open can in the front passenger seat. A trooper recorded in the affidavit: ‘While walking the scene, I visually observed two “Twisted Tea” 12 packs in the trunk of the Hyundai Elantra with a can being located in the front right passenger seat.’
Blood-Alcohol Evidence and Prior Citation
When a trooper met Krepps at hospital, he noted ‘drastic mood swings, using profanity and having slurred speech.’ Krepps consented to a blood draw at 6:08 a.m., roughly two hours after the crash.
Testing by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement returned a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.186, more than twice Florida’s legal limit of 0.08, the affidavit states.
Prosecutors also noted that Krepps had been cited by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission for illegal possession of alcohol approximately three weeks before the collision.
Krepps DUI Manslaughter Sentencing and Penalties
Circuit Judge John Simon imposed the statutory maximum of 15 years for DUI manslaughter, which carries a four-year mandatory minimum, followed by three consecutive years for DUI causing serious bodily injury, producing a total custodial term of 18 years. According to WEAR TV, the sentence is to be served in a Florida state correctional facility.
Judge Simon also ordered two years of probation upon release, completion of all statutory DUI classes and community service, and permanently revoked Krepps’ driving licence.
Victims testified before Judge Simon ahead of the sentencing, People reports. The prosecution was handled by Assistant State Attorney Amy Shea.
Kramer was 60 years old at the time of his death, according to North Escambia. He had served his country in the Navy and, in retirement, was carrying fellow service members home when Krepps’ vehicle struck his.
Krepps will be eligible to seek probation only after completing her custodial term. Any challenge to the conviction or sentence would proceed before the First District Court of Appeal in Florida, subject to grounds being established.
