WILMINGTON, Del. - A paraplegic who used a stick to operate the pedals of his car was sentenced to life plus 26 years for the death of a Delaware firefighter struck while she tended to an injured man.

Joseph M. Taye Jr., sitting in a wheelchair and dressed in an orange prison jumpsuit, apologized Thursday in Superior Court in Wilmington to the firefighter's family.

Michelle Smith, 29, was struck Dec. 20, 2008 on U.S. 13 in Delaware City.

Police said Taye was driving a car that sideswiped a police car at the scene of a motorcycle accident before striking Smith and the motorcyclist.

The life sentence was the mandatory minimum for the death of a firefighter killed in the line of the duty and the 26 years stemmed from assault and fleeing the scene charges.
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Information from: The News Journal of Wilmington, Del., http://www.delawareonline.com

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