WARREN - A Warren man who pled guilty to his involvement in a 2025 hit-and-run crash that killed a retired Newton Falls teacher has learned his fate on Wednesday.

Wayne Keeley, 63, was sentenced to four years in prison followed by five years of probation on third-degree felony charges of aggravated vehicular homicide and failure to stop after an accident, as well as a misdemeanor count of vehicular manslaughter.

His driver's license was also suspended.

The charges follow an October incident in Niles, during which investigators say Keeley drove his pickup truck off the road near Indiana Avenue and through a residential backyard.

The vehicle struck 67-year-old Brenda Hibbard while she was on the property. Hibbard, who had retired from teaching in Newton Falls in 2023, later died from her injuries at a hospital.

Police arrested Keeley after finding his pickup truck in a local shopping plaza two days after the crash. According to investigators, Keeley told officers he had fallen asleep at the wheel while driving home from work and left the scene because he panicked.