BUFFALO N.Y. (WIVB) - A 19-year-old from Colden could face a shorter sentence after admitting to causing a deadly crash in Amherst last year that killed three of her friends.
Jayla Mueller pleaded guilty to manslaughter and reckless driving that claimed the lives of 19-year-old Isabella French, 18-year-old Azathiel Pabon and 20-year-old Dakota Eldridge.
"She took three people way too soon. They had their whole life ahead of them," said Robbie Augustine who was best friends with Isabella French.
Augustine and Angelina Workman describe their friend Isabella as a bubbly person who was always laughing.
"She was true person, loyal to everybody and always spoke to what she thought was right.," Workman said. "She was just overall, a really really good person."
Michel Colondres lost her nephew, Azathiel Pabon, in the crash.
"It's an awful and very unfortunate situation in every aspect of it, because that girl was a friend to them," Colondres said. "[Jayla Mueller] survived the accident. They didn't."
Mueller plead guilty in court on Tuesday.
"She acknowledged that she did cause the accident. It was her fault," Colondres said.
Mueller could be sentenced as a youthful offender in this case. If she is, she could have a maximum of four years in prison, as opposed to 15 years if she was sentenced as an adult.
Criminal defense attorney Barry Covert, who has no involvement in this case, says granting youthful offender status is not unusual. The Mueller will have to remain arrest free and "abide by all the conditions of the court."
"It is very difficult for judges to handle these types of cases. We have victims families who have just suffered the greatest tragedy you can face," Covert said. "Then you have a defendant who is is also a young individual who the judge is looking at, what do I do with the defendant? The defendant is not getting off scotch free by any stretch at all."
Workman and Augustine are still hurting and hope Mueller learns from this.
"We all wish it would've been a longer sentence then what it was, but it's something," Workman said. "It's justice for those three individuals, who don't get to have the rest of their lives."
"My biggest wish from all of this, although I won't ever have closure, it's that Jayla really understands what she did to people and the everlasting effects that are going to be from this," Augustine said.
Mueller will be sentenced in July.
Sarah Minkewicz is an Emmy-nominated reporter and Buffalo native who has been a part of the News 4 team since 2019. Follow Sarah on Twitter @SarahMinkewicz and click here to see more of her work.
