South Hadley man pleads guilty in deadly pedestrian accident in Easthampton

EASTHAMPTON, Mass. (WWLP) – A South Hadley man who changed his plea to guilty in a deadly pedestrian accident on Route 10 in Easthampton last year was sentenced Wednesday.

According to Northwestern District Attorney Spokesperson Laurie Loisel, 65-year-old Stuart A. Larkin of South Hadley was sentenced to one year in prison but suspended for five years while he is on probation. This means that Larkin will not serve any jail time as long as he stays out of trouble.

“This was done by a good person to good people,” stated Judge Jacklyn Connly before announcing the sentencing.

Larkin must also perform 200 hours of community service “in honor of the victims and their family.” Both victims, 81-year-old Edward Hanlon Jr. and 60-year-old Ilona Murray, were known to be active volunteers with the Mann free meals program in Northampton.

Larkin pleaded guilty to two counts of negligent motor vehicle homicide in the deaths of Hanlon and Murray.

“While we understand Mr. Larkin feels badly for the killing of Mr. Hanlon and Ms. Murray and commend him for cooperating with the police during the initial stages of the investigation, we cannot ignore the loss felt by the family of the deceased and the loss to the community in general,” Assistant District Attorney Matthew Thomas stated. “The killing in this case, as is often the case in a negligent killing, was of good people by a good person.”

Larkin’s attorney Joseph Bernard stated his client has been sincerely remorseful since the accident. “What we saw here was truly an accident,” Bernard said in the courtroom while Larkin stood next to him sobbing.

On August 2, 2022 around 7:30 p.m., Hanlon and Murray were attempting to cross the street on Route 10 near the Burger King in Easthampton when they were struck by Larkin’s vehicle.