Around the same time, Halsell was on his way from Huntsville to pick up his son from West Monroe, Louisiana, in a rental car. Halsell had consumed the alcohol and medication at a Motel 6 just hours prior.

James was traveling down a highway in Tuscaloosa County, just minutes away from home, when Halsell’s vehicle struck his car from behind at about 100 mph. The vehicle flipped, struck the median and the girls were ejected from the car. Then it would be another 100 yards before the vehicle would come to a stop. The Tuscaloosa News reports that Halsell was on probation for DUI conviction in California at the time of the accident.

“It is difficult to say that a 13-year-old did not die quickly enough,” Webb said, as he detailed the girls’ final moments and suffering to the court. James was knocked unconscious and his fiancée’s back was broken.

Webb called the situation a “tragedy.”

“There are clearly no winners here,” he said. “It’s a horrible thing for the family. You have a man who has done very good things, who in this case did a very, very, very bad thing. It shows how thin the line is, and how fast and how far people can fall.” At the time of their deaths, Jayla hoped to be a teacher while Niomi had dreams of becoming a police officer.

Halsell, who retired in 2006 after logging more than 1,250 hours in space, read a letter of apology taking responsibility for his actions.

The letter read in part, “I and I alone am responsible for the terrible accident that caused the deaths of Niomi James and Jayla Parler. These two beautiful and innocent girls were lost to you, their families and friends, and to this world that they would have blessed, because I committed an egregious lapse in awareness and judgement. The consequence of these mistakes cannot be undone nor can they be forgiven.”