COLFAX, Wash. - Former fugitive Frederick Russell has been sentenced to 14 years, three months in prison for causing a traffic accident that killed three Washington State University students and injured three others.

"You are going to get the maximum sentence, Mr. Russell, whether you believe it or not, because you deserve it," said Whitman County Superior Court Judge David Frazier. "It's as simple as that. You need to be held accountable."

NWCN / KREM

Fred Russell appears in a courthouse in Colfax, Wash., to listen to his prison sentence.

A jury convicted Russell, 29, in November on three counts of vehicular homicide and three counts of vehicular assault. He was drunk, speeding and trying to pass in a no-passing zone on State Route 270 -- the dangerous, winding road between the college towns of Pullman, Wash., and Moscow, Idaho -- the night of June 4, 2001, when his vehicle crossed the centerline and smashed into a car containing six fellow Washington State University students.

Russell disappeared shortly before his trial was to begin and hid in Ireland until his discovery in 2005. He was extradited to the U.S. in 2006.

Russell clutched a rosary and stammered often as he addressed his surviving victims and the relatives of those killed, telling them that during the years he spent on the run, he often attended a church where he lit candles for the victims.

"There aren't enough words that could define who your children were, that could define what you've gone through," he said. "I'm sorry -- you've been waiting too long to hear that."

But Frazier had little sympathy, saying, "While I've heard you speak, I've heard people speak on your behalf, Mr. Russell, quite frankly I haven't heard very much in mitigation of the sentence that I should impose here."

Killed were Brandon Clements, 22, of Wapato; Stacy Morrow, 21, of Milton; and Ryan Sorensen, 21, of Westport. John Wagner of Harrington; Kara Eichelsdoerfer of Central Park; and Sameer Ranade of Kennewick were seriously injured.

Several family members and two of the surviving crash victims addressed the court first, airing their grief. Wagner described the pain he continues to bear and pleaded with Russell for a simple apology.

"Just say you're sorry," Wagner said. "Accept responsibility and let us go on with our lives."

Karen Overacker, Clements' mother, said nothing prepared her for the horror of her son's death, and described seeing his body on a cold metal table, his legs broken and his face reconstructed with wax and glue.

Russell's flight added insult to their pain, several said.

"When it came time to stand up like a man ... he chose to run," Overacker said. "He chose to show himself as the coward he was raised to be."

Russell suffered only minor injuries in the crash. He was charged with vehicular homicide and assault, but was released on a relatively low bond of $5,000 -- outraging victims and families.

He failed to show up for a hearing on Oct. 26, 2001. According to police, he sold some baseball cards, gathered other assets and fled to Ireland.

Shortly after he jumped bail, several newspapers received a letter allegedly signed by the fugitive. It said he feared for his life and did not think he would receive a fair trial.

"I maintain my innocence. But my life has been repeatedly threatened, so I cannot stay," the letter said.

In 2005, the U.S. Marshals Service placed Russell on its Most Wanted list, the only drunken-driving suspect to make it. A man in Ireland saw the picture and called authorities. Russell fought extradition but was returned to the U.S. in 2006.

According to police reports, Russell had been drinking in a Pullman bar, then got into his Chevy Blazer and drove toward Moscow, Idaho, eight miles to the east.

Russell came upon a slower vehicle and, even though he was in a no-passing zone, tried to pass at 90 mph, police said. Police believe that Russell's vehicle struck a car heading in the opposite direction, then plowed into a Cadillac carrying the six WSU students, who were returning from a movie in Moscow.

At a hospital after the crash, Russell's blood-alcohol level measured .12 percent, well above Washington state's intoxication threshold of 0.08.

The judge ordered that once Russell is released, he will be subject to 18 to 36 months of community supervision, during which he will be required to have an alcohol-detection interlock device installed in his car. He declined to give Russell credit for time he served while awaiting extradition from Ireland.