A Washington Township man was sentenced to three to six years in state prison Friday for the death of a fellow township man in a 2023 fatal crash.
David Bedick, 23, pleaded guilty Friday to homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence in the death of Alex Orange, 21, in a June 4, 2023, crash on Crestview Drive in Washington Township.
Bedick will serve a one- to two-year sentence on an aggravated assault by vehicle charge, concurrently with his homicide by vehicle charge, Westmoreland County Judge Scott Mears ruled.
Mears ordered Bedick, who had been free on bond, to be taken from his courtroom and transported to prison.
Orange, a 2020 Kiski Area High School graduate, was a passenger in Bedick’s Dodge Ram truck when it crashed. He was a student at Penn West University’s California campus.
Mears told Bedick that had he been convicted at trial, he could have been sentenced up to 10 years in prison.
Bedick was not arrested by Washington Township police until Jan. 29, 2024, according to court documents. He also was charged with five counts of DUI and two counts of aggravated assault by vehicle.
Members of the victim’s family, who were in the courtroom, declined to issue a victim’s statement.
“I’m very sorry for your loss,” Judge Mears said. “It is very difficult to come to proceedings like this.”
Defense attorney William Difenderfer pointed out that “these guys were all close friends.”
