Admitted drunk driver sentenced to 12 years in death of TCNJ student

A man who admitted to driving drunk on Route 31 in December 2018 and killing a TCNJ student who was his friends' designated driver that night was sentenced to 12 years in prison Monday.

David Lamar, of West Windsor, swerved into the vehicle driven by sophomore Michael Sot in the early morning hours of Dec. 2. A total of eight people were involved in the crash, including five TCNJ students who were in Sot's car. Sot died two days after the crash.

Lamar pleaded guilty in June to death by auto and assault by auto charges. His sentence represents the maximum he could have received.

A dozen people gave emotional impact statements during the sentencing about Sot, including his mother, who told Judge Janetta Marbrey it's Lamar's turn to be in prison.

"For nearly three years I've been (a grief-stricken) prison. It's his (Lamar's) turn now," Candice Buno-Sot said, according to MyCentralJersey.com coverage of the hearing.

The father of Anthony Galante, one of the survivors of the crash, told the judge his son has had 25 blood transfusions since the crash and suffered a traumatic brain injury, according to MyCentralJersey.com.

Lamar told the judge he took responsibility for his actions and wished it was him who died in the crash, not Michael Sot.

The Landmark Bar at the Campustown retail area on TCNJ's campus, where Lamar consumed alcohol to the point of getting a .239 blood-alcohol content reading, has since closed.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ