A Skowhegan man will serve seven years in prison for a crash that left another man dead last year.
Rhaheem Friend, 34, pleaded guilty to manslaughter on Aug. 12, according to the Lewiston Sun Journal.
In exchange for his guilty plea, prosecutors dismissed two other charges — aggravated operating under the influence and causing a death while his license was suspended or revoked, the Journal reported.
He was sentenced to 20 years in prison with all but seven suspended and four years of probation.
Friend was driving on South Solon Road in Solon about 7:10 a.m. on Aug. 7, 2024, when he left the road and crashed into trees, according to the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office.
Friend was taken to the hospital, where he was treated for serious injuries.
His passenger, 39-year-old Nicholas Foss of Madison, died at the scene. The Maine medical examiner’s office ruled Foss died from blunt force trauma, the Journal reported.
Detectives investigated the case over several months and arrested Friend in April at the Somerset County Jail in Madison, where he was being held on unrelated charges.
Friend is being held at the Maine State Prison in Warren, where he won’t be eligible for release until Oct. 2, 2030, at the earliest, according to the Maine Department of Corrections.
