A Fowlerville woman has been sentenced for her role in a fatal crash that claimed the life of a Hartland man.

54-year-old Sarah Jane Fluegel was convicted last month on a charge of reckless driving causing death as a result of the September 5th, 2017 incident. On Monday, she was sentenced to two years of probation, with the first year to be served in the Livingston County Jail.

The Livingston County Sheriff’s Office determined 72-year-old Alan Zielinski was killed when his Jeep Cherokee was hit by Fluegel’s Mazda 6 on Grand River Avenue east of Burkhart Road. The crash occurred where the roadway narrows down to one lane and authorities said at the time, road rage may have been at play. Zielinski’s Jeep was forced off the road and overturned, hitting a telephone pole, a tree, and a cement pillar. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

While alcohol was not suspected as a factor at the time of the crash, toxicology reports on Fluegel eventually came back positive for narcotics. Fluegel could have faced more than four years in prison as she had also originally been charged with driving while under the influence causing death, but that was dropped after she pleaded no contest to reckless driving causing death. (JK)