Man to get jail time in teen-alcohol case

Wednesday, May 26, 2004 | 10:58 a.m.

The underage man who bought beer for a group of teenagers involved in a fatal Nov. 10 car accident will spend two months in jail, a harsh punishment that prosecutors hope will deter others from supplying alcohol to minors.

Pierre Goujon, 20, was sentenced to 16 months in prison, 14 months of which were suspended, and will be required to pay a $1,000 fine and perform 100 hours of community service for buying beer for a 16-year-old who later crashed his car, resulting in the death of his 15-year-old friends Kyle Poff, Travis Dunning and Josh Parry.

A fourth passenger, Cody Fredericks, was injured in the crash but survived.

Judge Pro Tem Melanie Tobiasson said Goujon would serve the full 16-month sentence if he failed to stay out of trouble or consumed alcohol.

Goujon pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of being a minor in possession of alcohol, using a false identification to purchase alcohol and providing alcohol to minors.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Frank Ponticello said because the alcohol provided in this case resulted in death prosecutors sought a strong sentence.

"I certainly hope this (sentence) serves as a deterrent," Ponticello said. "When you have a case like this so close to graduation, I hope this will prevent teens and other people from purchasing alcohol for minors."

Detectives who interviewed Goujon said he originally lied about buying the beer before later confessing that he used a fake ID to purchase an 18-pack and a 12-pack of beer for the teens.

The 16-year-old driver pleaded guilty in juvenile court in February to four counts of felony DUI and reckless driving causing death or substantial bodily harm.

The boy was sentenced to two years in the Clark County Juvenile Detention Center and 600 hours of community service spent speaking out against drunken driving.

Authorities say the teen's blood alcohol level was 0.19 when he was driving his 1995 Pontiac Grand Am at 80 mph in a 25-mph zone and crashed into a brick wall on Silver Springs Parkway in Henderson.