A Somerville man who drove the wrong way on Route 107 and crashed head-on into a Lynn college student’s car has been sentenced to 24 to 28 years in prison, closing the criminal chapter of a case that has haunted the North Shore for nearly three years.
In Salem Superior Court on Tuesday, 40-year-old William Leger admitted responsibility for the 2021 crash that killed 19-year-old Ashley Forward, an Emmanuel College nursing student and first-generation college attendee from Lynn. Leger, who pleaded guilty, apologized in court and insisted to the judge, “I’m not a monster.”
The judge ordered a 24-to-28-year state prison sentence and credited Leger with roughly five years he has already spent in custody, according to CBS Boston. Leger pleaded guilty to manslaughter and several related charges. Prosecutors say the deadly crash happened on June 9, 2021, as he fled police in a stolen car.
Crash and early reporting
State police and early accounts show officers were first called to a 7-Eleven on Lincoln Avenue, then located the suspect vehicle on Ballard Street. From there, the car entered Route 107 traveling the wrong way and continued until it slammed head-on into Forward’s vehicle, killing her at the scene, according to The Boston Globe. Forward had just wrapped up her first year as a nursing student at Emmanuel College and was the first in her family to go to college, her relatives said at the time.
Prosecutors charged Leger with a long list of offenses, including manslaughter, motor-vehicle homicide by reckless operation, unarmed robbery, receiving a stolen vehicle, and operating with a suspended license. He ultimately entered guilty pleas only days before his trial was set to begin, according to Boston 25 News. Authorities say he was behind the wheel of a stolen 2013 Volkswagen Jetta and driving at high speed when the collision occurred.
Family reaction
Forward’s mother and sister delivered emotional victim-impact statements during the sentencing. Her mother told the court, “There is no pain greater than losing a child,” and said she is not ready to forgive while she focuses on keeping Ashley’s memory alive, according to CBS Boston. Relatives described Ashley as bright, driven, and excited about a future in nursing.
Legal aftermath and civil case
In September 2024, Forward’s mother filed a wrongful-death lawsuit that argues a police pursuit helped set the stage for the crash. The suit claims two Saugus officers’ chase of the stolen car contributed to the deadly wreck and names both the town and the individual officers as defendants, Boston 25 News reported.
Media coverage from 2021 shows the criminal case began with a sweeping indictment that included murder charges before prosecutors and defense lawyers ultimately reached a plea deal, according to The Boston Globe.
The prison sentence brings some legal closure to the state’s prosecution of Leger, but the separate civil lawsuit keeps questions about police pursuit practices and accountability very much alive as Forward’s family continues to grieve and look for answers.
