Man Gets 10 Years in Prison for DWI Crash That Killed O'Fallon Man

Patrick Walsh was sentenced Wednesday to 10 years in prison for the DWI crash that killed two people and injured five in September 2011.

Police estimated Walsh was driving about 100 mph when his car rear-ended a Chevy Tahoe, which flipped several times.

Michael McLemore, 37, of O’Fallon; and Steven Brueggen, 38, of Florissant, a teacher at Parkwoods Elementary in Maryland Heights, were both killed.

Walsh was sentenced to 10 years for each count of involuntary manslaughter and seven years for each of five counts of second-degree assault. The sentences will be served concurrently, and Walsh has served about 17 months in jail.

“Unlike Mr. Brueggen and Mr. McLemore, you will have an opportunity to reclaim your life. They won’t have that opportunity,” said St. Louis County Circuit Court Judge Michael T. Jamison, after he handed down the sentence.

Assistant prosecuting attorney Alan Key said 10 years is as heavy a sentence as he’s seen in a involuntary manslaughter case

“Part of it was that he had a prior DWI, and the fact that he killed two people and injured five,” Key said.

Patch will update this story with reaction from family and friends of Brueggen and McLemore.

For more crime information on Maryland Heights Patch, see the following articles:

• Parkwood Elementary Teacher Killed in Car Crash
• Organizers Plan Trivia Night to Remember Steve Brueggen
• Sentencing Postponed in Double Manslaughter Case