Minnesota Driver Distracted by Sex Gets Prison Time

A Minnesota man made a tearful plea for leniency before a judge sentenced him to just over four years in prison for a crash that killed two people, including a woman with whom he allegedly was having sex while driving.

Twenty-four-year-old Mark Chalin, of Mankato, sobbed Monday as he said he’d trade his life for the lives of his victims “in a heartbeat.”

The August 2011 crash killed his girlfriend, 23-year-old Amber Menzes, and the other driver, 35-year-old Jonna Martin, of Lakefield.

The Free Press of Mankato reports the courtroom was dead silent when Judge Bradley Walker handed down a sentence of 50 months, with the possibility of supervised release after about three years. He implored everyone present to think about how someone’s life can change in an instant.