Teen sentenced for deadly 2015 hit-and-run

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Evan Shepherd, 27, died in January 2015

FORT MYERS, Fla. – A teenager will not go to jail after she took a plea deal, admitting to killing a man in a January 2015 hit-and-run crash.

The 17-year-old girl was instead sentenced to probation on Tuesday and will wear an ankle monitor for 90 days. She also will face random drug and alcohol testing, will have a curfew and undergo counseling with her family.

Evan Shepherd, 27, died when his car hit a tree, flipped, then pinned him inside the vehicle on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard near Palm Avenue. The then 16-year-old girl is accused of killing Shepherd by causing his accident.

“You bragged about getting away with murder but you did it,” one woman said in court Tuesday.

Police said the teen left the scene and dumped the car she was driving. She was arrested eight months later in August 2015 when police learned she had been driving without a license.

“And you left him on the side of the road like a dog,” a woman tearfully said in court.

The now 17-year-old girl offered a one sentence apology, avoiding eye contact with his family.

“I’m sorry for hurting you guys’ family,” she said with tears.

The 17-year-old girl was ordered to read and respond to 20 letters written by Shepherd’s friends and family.

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