The man now accused of the drunken-driving murder of a teenage girl has spent less than two months in county jail despite a lifetime of crime that forced even his parents to seek protection, records show.
Austin Jeffrey Farley, 26, has instead spent most of his adult life on probation, checking into and out of treatment centers, the records show. He has never faced serious prison time until this week, when his truck collided with a car coming from a birthday party, fatally injuring a high-school cheerleader.
Farley has a long problem with alcohol, his court records show, and prosecutors say he was so drunk after the crash that he had trouble standing. They have charged him with murder and driving under the influence; he pleaded not guilty Wednesday...