Bloomington,IL : B-N man gets 15 years for fatal hit-and-run accident on April, Friday 6th 2018

A Bloomington man was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Friday in connection with a hit-and-run accident that killed an Indiana woman in September.

Jakeb Collins, 22, pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident and reckless homicide. He was accused of driving a car that struck another vehicle in which Phyllis Graver, of Carmel, Ind., was a passenger on Morrissey Drive and Chrisman Lane.

The plea hearing included victim impact statements from members of Graver’s family.

Jennifer Davis, Graver's daughter, acknowledged the shared grief the accident has caused Collins’ mother who also was at the hearing.

“Her pain is as great as my own,” said Davis.

The measure of Graver’s impact on the lives of others was reflected in the attendance at her funeral by more than 300 people, said Davis.

“Her life mattered and she was not done living it,” Davis told Judge Robert Frietag.

In addition to the 15 years Collins received related to the accident, he also was sentenced to a concurrent 16-year term for an unrelated 2015 armed robbery.

Collins stood at the judge’s bench and looked down as the statements were read.

Graver’s sister, Marilyn Barton, urged Collins to take advantage of services offered by the Department of Corrections.

“Don’t let my sister die in vain,” Barton told him.

After the hearing, Assistant State's Attorney Brad Rigdon said, “No amount of years in prison can erase that tragic day. Hopefully, the conviction can be a step in the process of closure for the victim’s family.”

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B-N man gets 15 years for fatal hit-and-run accident