A Penn Hills man will serve two years of house arrest for the 2019 death of another man in a drunken driving crash on Frankstown Road.
Theamon Jemal Hicks, 49, pleaded guilty in May to homicide by vehicle, involuntary manslaughter and driving under the influence before Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Thomas E. Flaherty.
According to investigators, Hicks was driving a pickup truck on Frankstown Road in Penn Hills when he crossed the center line and struck an SUV head-on about 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 7, 2019.
Steven Prazenica, 33, of Allison Park died a short time later.
An officer reported smelling alcohol on Hicks’ breath in the ambulance, according to a criminal complaint. He admitted that he’d been drinking tequila at World Class Tavern on Long Run Road that afternoon.
Police said Hicks had a blood-alcohol level of 0.381%— nearly five times the legal limit of 0.08%.
Police wrote in the criminal complaint that gouge marks and debris in the road indicated the vehicles collided about 20 feet from where they’d come to rest. They noted no evidence of braking or skidding, and Prazenica appeared to have been thrown partially into the back passenger seat by the impact.
The criminal complaint noted that the posted speed limit in that area is 35 mph.
The district attorney’s office withdrew a count of homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence, which carries a mandatory minimum three-year prison term, in consultation with Prazenica’s family.
Flaherty ordered Hicks to serve two years house arrest, to be followed by seven years probation.
