By Associated Press - Thursday, March 30, 2017

WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) - The driver who struck and killed a Massachusetts toll collector has been sentenced to probation.

The Telegram & Gazette (https://bit.ly/2obKwgF ) reports that 33-year-old Matthew McAvey, of Charlton, pleaded guilty Wednesday to driving to endanger and speeding in the July 2015 death of Massachusetts Turnpike toll collector Bill Pappas.

Under a plea deal, McAvey received a two-year jail sentence suspended for three years of probation, and a charge of motor vehicle homicide was dismissed.



Police say McAvey was driving 36 mph through an E-ZPass lane at the Auburn toll plaza where the speed limit is 15 mph. The 61-year-old Pappas, of Holden, was crossing the lane on foot for a break. He died at the hospital.

A tearful McAvey apologized in court.

Toll booths have since been eliminated from the highway.

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Information from: Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, Mass.), https://www.telegram.com

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