Seabrook man sentenced for 2020 crash that took his girlfriend's life. What to know
BRENTWOOD — A Seabrook man charged in a drunken driving crash that killed his girlfriend in November 2020 was sentenced this week to 9 to 18 years in prison.
Earl Ganoe Jr., 41, of Seabrook, pleaded guilty Wednesday, Jan. 4, in Rockingham Superior Court to one count of reckless manslaughter for causing the death of Stephanie Girard, 40, of Seabrook, and one count of falsifying physical evidence.
Superior Court Judge Andrew Schulman handed down the sentence that he noted was "substantially less than what the state and victim’s (family) had asked for."
Prosecutors were seeking a 15- to 30-year sentence while the defense wanted a 5- to 10-year sentence as part of a capped plea deal. Both agreed to a 10- to 30-year suspended sentence and indefinite loss of license for the falsifying physical evidence charge.
"The court is guided by the principle of parsimony, i.e. it wished to impose a sentence that is sufficient to serve the legitimate goals of sentence but not excessive," stated Schulman in his order.
The sentence, he stated, "provides for adequate general and specific deterrence, as well as rehabilitation."
Ganoe was ordered to participate in drug and alcohol treatment programs in prison, where he could get an additional two years of the minimum sentence suspended if completed.
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The state's evidence
Ganoe was arrested on Nov. 7, 2020. According to police, Ganoe was drunk when he lost control of a black 2013 Mercedes C300 and crashed into a telephone pole at around 11:10 a.m. while driving on Kensington Road (Route 84) in Hampton Falls.
Witnesses told police the driver of the Mercedes was traveling at a pace above the speed limit, passing their vehicles and others on the two-lane road. They said the car struck a stone wall and finally stopped after hitting a utility pole.
Ganoe, according to witness testimony, emerged from the driver's side of the car following the accident, tossed cans out of the vehicle, and pulled Girard from the car. Other drivers and bystanders responded, according to the arrest affidavit, performing CPR on Girard, who died from her injuries.
Police said Ganoe was slurring his words and smelled of alcohol.
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Ganoe later acknowledged he and the victim had been drinking that morning, specifically vodka and orange juice, according to the affidavit, “So I should never have gotten behind the wheel, I understand that.” He also admitted that following the accident he removed and discarded containers of “screwdrivers,” knowing “he would be in trouble if law enforcement observed them in the vehicle.”
According to information state police found, Ganoe, who had just moved to Seabrook from Texas, never got a New Hampshire driver's license and his Texas license was suspended. He had three prior convictions of driving while intoxicated, the most recent being on May 5, 2020.
As part of the capped plea deal, prosecutors agreed to drop the charges of negligent homicide and the aggravated driving under the influence charge.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Seabrook man sentenced in fatal car crash that killed Stephanie Girard
