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Teen to pay restitution after drunken boat crash

Posted at 8:38 PM, Oct 15, 2019
and last updated 2019-10-15 20:44:25-04

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Hayley Gorski must pay $16K in restitution and serve 2 1/2 years probation after crashing a pontoon boat in May 2019.

Gorski was drinking while driving the boat on the Thornapple River and crashed it into the supports of the M-6 bridge. The teen and other passengers were celebrating high school graduation and had been driving the boat around the river all day. Three people were injured as the impact threw them from the boat. Gorski pleaded guilty in August and offered an apology to the people she hurt during sentencing.

Kent County Circuit Court Judge Paul Sullivan offered leniency in Gorski’s sentence at the request of the crash victims. The 18-year-old will avoid jail time and a felony conviction if she meets the conditions of her probation: Pay $16K in restitution to the crash victims and their insurers, no alcohol, no going in to bars, and no legal trouble for the next 30 months.