Prison for Fairview Twp. man who killed war veteran in DUI crash

A Fairview Township man must spend at least eight years in state prison for causing an alcohol-fueled crash that killed an Iraq war veteran and injured another person in 2015.

Justin Mitchell Haines, 39, pleaded guilty May 20 in York County Court to the charges of homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence, aggravated assault while DUI, homicide by vehicle, aggravated assault by vehicle, DUI and careless driving. The vehicular homicide and aggravated assault charges are felonies.

On Friday, June 28, Haines was back before Common Pleas Judge Maria Musti Cook. She sentenced him to eight to 16 years in prison, according to court records, which was pursuant to his plea agreement.

As part of Haines' plea agreement, a charge of third-degree murder was dropped.

Fairview Township Police have said Haines' blood-alcohol level was about three times the legal limit when he caused a Feb. 8, 2015, crash that took the life of 30-year-old Kyle Quigley, of New Cumberland.

After sentencing, York County sheriff's deputies took Haines into custody to transport him to prison, county officials said.

His defense attorney, Edward Spreha Jr., could not immediately be reached for comment.

Legal wrangling over the admissibility of Haines' blood-alcohol testing results, which included appeals to the state Superior Court, delayed the case for years, according to court records.

The background: Haines was westbound on Lewisberry Road about 5:50 p.m., traveling 78 mph in a 40 mph speed-limit zone, when he crashed into Quigley's car, which had been stopped at a stop sign at the intersection of Poplar Road, according to Fairview Township Police.

Haines slammed on the brakes about a second before the collision, which slowed his speed to about 60 mph, police have said.

The force of the crash threw Quigley from his car, according to police, who said a passenger in Quigley's car suffered serious injuries.

Quigley died about two hours later at a Harrisburg hospital.

Haines' blood-alcohol level was determined to be 0.25% — more than three times the legal limit. In Pennsylvania, an adult is driving drunk at 0.08%.

Haines previously pleaded guilty to DUI and related offenses in 2008 in Dauphin County and was sentenced to six months in prison there, according to court records.

War veteran: Quigley graduated from Cedar Cliff High School in 2003, then joined the Army as a cavalry scout with the 101st Airborne Division, according to his obituary.

He was a veteran of the Iraq War.

Quigley was an activist who participated in demonstrations and marches to help increase awareness of the treatment of war veterans, his obituary states.

He also was a former president of the Harrisburg Area Community College chapter of Iraq Veterans Against the War, according to his obituary, which describes him as a free spirit who traveled extensively.

— Reach Liz Evans Scolforo at levans@yorkdispatch.com or on Twitter at @LizScolforoYD.