A Wisconsin woman was sentenced to ten years in prison after pleading guilty to dragging her husband underneath her truck for nearly 50 feet, causing his death.
Mary Terry, 50, pleaded guilty on Jan. 6 to homicide by intoxicated driving in connection with the death of her husband, Donald Britten Jr., on Oct. 19, 2023. Terry was accused of intentionally colliding with Britten with her truck while she had a blood-alcohol level of 0.298, more than four times the legal limit.
Terry dragged his body 48 feet across the pavement before running him over again. According to the criminal complaint, a neighbor told police that at the time of the incident, he heard a “prolonged thud” followed by “doo doo, doo doo,” which sounded like a vehicle driving over a speed bump.
As previously reported by Law&Crime, Terry was initially charged with first-degree intentional homicide.
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Prosecuting attorney Alexander Seifert used the courtroom to demonstrate how far Britten’s body was dragged under Terry’s truck, noting that the courtroom was only slightly smaller than the 48-foot distance required.
However, Seifert stated in court that if anyone thought 48 feet was not a long distance, “I would certainly encourage them to drag a finger across a cheese grater for one inch with their body weight—not the weight of a truck.”
Seifert repeated the noise heard by a neighbor, which sounded like a vehicle passing over a speed bump: “doo doo, doo doo.” He continued: “In this case, obviously the bump was Mr. Britten.”
He also showed images in court of Britten’s injuries sustained during the fatal collision, graphically describing the “effect that concrete does to human flesh.” While the cameras in the courtroom were not permitted to capture those images, they did focus on Terry, who sobbed at the defense table as she avoided looking at the charges she had pleaded guilty for.
Seifert stated that, while Terry had no criminal record, her violent act against Britten made her “a danger to the community” and recommended the maximum sentence of 15 years in prison plus 10 years probation.
When the defense team spoke, attorney Kelli Sue Thompson stated that Terry became an alcoholic after many years of family tragedies, a condition exacerbated by the death of her son in a car accident.
While Thompson stated that her client was not denying what happened when she backed over her husband, she also stated that Terry “loved him,” and that both of them were “so intoxicated” on the night of Britten’s death. Thompson claimed Terry was so intoxicated that he “does not remember” what happened that fateful night.
Albert Moustakis, Terry’s other defense attorney, argued that his client was so intoxicated that her crime could not have been intentional and should not be sentenced as such. Terry “takes complete responsibility” for her actions, he said.
While Terry did not speak, Thompson read a statement written by her aloud in court. In the statement, she stated, “I would never have intentionally hurt Donnie” and described him as the love of her life.
Judge Michael Schiek said, “The evidence shows this was more than an accident.” Before delivering his sentence, the judge stated, “What’s sticking with me today that I heard … is this would never have happened if you hadn’t been intoxicated,” addressing Terry directly. He added, “I believe that is probably true. But it happened, and you were, and I can’t accept intoxication as part of any defense.”
Schiek sentenced Terry to 10 years in prison plus 10 years of extended supervision after considering mandatory minimums — five years under Wisconsin law — and determining that the crime did not warrant either the minimum or maximum sentence. She was also ordered to make restitution. The judge ruled that Terry could not participate in a treatment program that would allow her to be released from prison before serving her eight-year sentence.