Woman gets 16 years for trying to drive while drunk

ROCKVILLE, Md. (AP) - A Maryland woman whose drunken driving left two men dead is going back to prison after trying to drive while intoxicated.

The Washington Post reported Thursday that 41-year-old Kelli Loos was sentenced to 16 years in prison. A judge in Montgomery County said the “public has to be protected” from her.

Loos tried to drive while drunk less than a month after getting her license back. She blew several times into a Breathalyzer-like device that locks the car’s ignition if it detects alcohol. Her actions violated her parole conditions.

The Bethesda woman’s prison term will likely be far less. But Loos was stunned by the punishment. She has a daughter who is about 9 years old.

The accident that killed two men occurred on the Capital Beltway in 2009.

___

Information from: The Washington Post, http://www.washingtonpost.com