A Michigan woman has been sentenced to just one year behind bars, with every day of her jail term to be served on weekends, after killing a 76-year-old great-grandmother with her car and then driving away.
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day → sentence → car
Stephanie Holt, 32, described by her lawyer as someone who would 'never hurt a fly', will be allowed to spend her weekdays outside jail despite pleading no contest to a felony carrying a potential 15-year prison sentence over the death of Mary Hulswit in St. Clair Shores, Michigan.
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who → describe → Shores
Holt was sentenced on Tuesday to 365 days in the Macomb County Jail, structured as weekend confinement, along with two years of probation.
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Holt → sentence → probation
Holt had been due to report to the Macomb County Jail for the first time at 5pm on Friday, beginning a punishment that will see her return behind bars every weekend for an entire year before being released again.
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her → report → year
The sentence follows the death of Hulswit on November 1, 2025.
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sentence → follow → November
Police were summoned to a St. Clair Shores home after receiving a report of a body lying at the end of a driveway.
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Police → summon → driveway
Hulswit, who lived in the city, was found with injuries investigators said were consistent with having been struck by a vehicle.
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investigators → live → vehicle
Authorities said Holt had hit the 76-year-old while backing her vehicle out of the driveway and then left the scene rather than staying to summon help.
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Holt → say → help
Stephanie Holt, 32, will serve her 365-day jail sentence entirely on weekends after the fatal crash
Mary Hulswit, 76, was found dead at the end of a driveway after being struck by Holt's vehicle
Days later, Holt was charged with failure to stop at the scene of an accident resulting in death, a felony carrying a maximum possible sentence of 15 years.
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Holt → serve → years
She was arraigned that month and released on $100,000 bond with a GPS tether.
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She → arraign → tether
She was also ordered to stay away from both the scene and Hulswit's family.
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She → order → scene
Holt ultimately pleaded no contest on July 15.
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Holt → plead → July
Macomb County Circuit Court Judge Jennifer M. Faunce also ordered her to perform 200 hours of community service, undergo counseling and have no contact with Hulswit's family.
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her → order → family
Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido said Holt should have remained at the scene and sought help after the fatal collision.
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Holt → say → collision
'No one should ever leave the scene of an injury accident,' Lucido said.
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Lucido → leave → accident
'This defendant will have time to consider her choice of leaving when she should have called for help.
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she → have → help
'Our thoughts remain with the family as they continue to live with a loss that can never be undone,' he added.
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he → remain → loss
Holt's attorney, Derek Miller, has defended his client and said the unusual sentence was requested in part so she would have the opportunity to find another job.
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she → defend → job
Prosecutors said Holt fled instead of staying at the scene and calling for help after the collision
According to Miller, Holt had been working two jobs when the fatal collision occurred but lost both following her conviction.
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collision → say → conviction
The attorney also stressed that Holt had accepted responsibility and knew she had faced the possibility of prison and the loss of her driver's license.
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she → stress → license
He said Holt returned home after police requested that she do so on the day of the crash and subsequently cooperated with investigators and confessed.
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she → say → investigators
'This was a tragic accident,' Miller told The Detroit News.
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Miller → tell → News
'Ms. Holt simply backed out of her driveway, not intending to harm anyone.'
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Holt → back → anyone
Miller also revealed details of Holt's troubled childhood as he argued there was far more to his client's story than the public knew.
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public → reveal → story
He said Holt and her siblings had been removed from their home when they were young and placed into foster care.
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they → say → care
The attorney also said Holt suffers from PTSD and depression and is receiving treatment.
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Holt → say → treatment
'Anybody who has ever known Ms. Holt would tell you that she would never hurt a fly,' Miller said.
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Miller → know → fly
Police are seen at the scene of the accident in November 2025
'
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Police → see → November
She had no criminal history, no traffic violations.
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She → have → history
She doesn't drink or do drugs.'
Miller described Holt as a 'good person' who had been unable to emotionally cope with the enormity of what had happened after the collision.
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what → drink → collision
'She's a good person who experienced a traumatic incident and, unfortunately, did not have the mental/emotional skills to cope with what had happened,' he said.
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he → experience → skills
'This is something that will haunt her for the rest of her life.'
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that → haunt → life
The weekends-only arrangement means Holt will be able to spend much of her sentence outside the walls of the county jail.
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Holt → mean → jail
The unusual arrangement has already drawn criticism from a resident living near the scene of the deadly crash.
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arrangement → draw → crash
'I think that is a very lenient sentencing,' Perez Pearson told CBS Detroit.
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Pearson → think → Detroit
'I don't think that's harsh enough.
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that → think → ?
A lady lost her life that day.'
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lady → lose → life
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