Current:Home > FinanceNavy officer who killed 2 in Japan car crash released from U.S. custody -VisionFunds
Navy officer who killed 2 in Japan car crash released from U.S. custody
View
Date:2025-04-14 11:46:16
A Navy officer who had been jailed in Japan over a car crash that killed two Japanese citizens was released from U.S. custody on Friday, one month after he was returned to the United States and placed in a federal prison, his family said.
Lt. Ridge Alkonis was ordered released by the U.S. Parole Commission, according to the Justice Department and a family statement that described the extra detention in a Los Angeles detention facility as "unnecessary." In total, he spent 537 days locked up either in Japan or the U.S.
"He is now back home with his family, where he belongs. We will have more to say in time, but for now, we are focused on welcoming Ridge home and respectfully ask for privacy," the statement said. Alkonis's family is from Southern California.
The federal Bureau of Prisons confirmed in a separate statement that he had been released.
Alkonis was released from Japanese custody last month while serving a three-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to the negligent driving deaths of a woman and her son-in-law in May 2021.
Alkonis' family has said the crash was an accident that was caused when he lost consciousness while on a trip to Mount Fuji. Japanese prosecutors maintained that he fell asleep while drowsy and shirked a duty to pull over as he became fatigued.
"But he wasn't tired," Alkonis' wife, Brittany Alkonis, told CBS News in a July 2022 interview. "He was fine and alert. He had even noticed that I was at risk of getting car sick and told me to be careful."
Neither the Japanese police nor the U.S. Navy conducted a full medical exam during the 26 days he was in detention before he was charged.
"I'm really angry," Brittany said in her interview. "We've been told that this is the most egregious action against a service member in 60 years."
He was transferred in December into the custody of the Bureau of Prisons through a Justice Department program that permits the relocation of prisoners convicted in another country back to their home nation. The program stipulates that the sentence cannot be longer than the one imposed by the foreign government.
His family said no prison time was appropriate and protested the detention in Los Angeles.
The Parole Commission, which determines the release dates in the case of returning Americans, said that it had concluded that Alkonis was lawfully convicted in Japan of negligent driving causing death or injury and that the conviction was most similar in the U.S. criminal code to involuntary manslaughter.
But though U.S. sentencing guidelines recommended that a sentence of ten to 16 months be served if Alkonis had been convicted of the same crime in the U.S., the Parole Commission also determined that the amount of time he had already been jailed would have exceeded the applicable guideline range.
"Thus, as of January 12, 2024, the Commission ordered that he be immediately released from custody based on the time he had already served," the Parole Commission said in a statement.
- In:
- Fatal Car Crash
- Navy
- Japan
veryGood! (57477)
Related
- The Daily Money: Spending more on holiday travel?
- ACLU, abortion rights group sue Chicago over right to protest during Democratic National Convention
- Mississippi city council member pleads guilty to federal drug charges
- Celebrate May the Fourth with These Star Wars Items That Are Jedi-Approved
- Why we love Bear Pond Books, a ski town bookstore with a French bulldog 'Staff Pup'
- E. Coli recalls affect 20 states, DC. See map of where recalled food was sent.
- 'Loaded or unloaded?' 14-year-old boy charged in fatal shooting of 12-year-old girl in Pennsylvania
- Trevor Noah Reacts to Being Labeled Loser Over His Single Status at Age 40
- Questlove charts 50 years of SNL musical hits (and misses)
- Reports: Odell Beckham Jr. to sign with Miami Dolphins, his fourth team in four years
Ranking
- Paula Abdul settles lawsuit with former 'So You Think You Can Dance' co
- Court appearance for country star Morgan Wallen in chair-throwing case postponed until August
- Florida clarifies exceptions to 6-week abortion ban after it takes effect
- Alaska judge grants limited stay in correspondence school allotments decision
- Grammy nominee Teddy Swims on love, growth and embracing change
- Torrential rains inundate southeastern Texas, causing flooding that has closed schools and roads
- 'Indiana is the new Hollywood:' Caitlin Clark draws a crowd. Fever teammates embrace it
- Here are the job candidates that employers are searching for most
Recommendation
Who's hosting 'Saturday Night Live' tonight? Musical guest, how to watch Dec. 14 episode
Missouri abortion-rights campaign turns in more than double the needed signatures to get on ballot
'Freedom to Learn' protesters push back on book bans, restrictions on Black history
United Methodists remove anti-gay language from their official teachings on societal issues
B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
'Tattooist of Auschwitz': The 'implausible' true love story behind the Holocaust TV drama
Bucks' Patrick Beverley throws ball at Pacers fans, later removes reporter from interview
Safety lapses contributed to patient assaults at Oregon State Hospital, federal report says