A Vermont man will serve at least three years

A Vermont man who prosecutors said was driving nearly 100 mph while impaired when he crashed his truck and killed his two young daughters in Littleton in 2021 will serve at least three years in state prison. Just before 6:30 p.m. on Dec. 5, 2021, Jordan Couture, 38, of Milton, was driving on northbound I93 near Exit 44 with his eldest daughter, Kyriana Couture, 10, in the front passenger seat, and Kelsey Couture, 7, in the right rear seat, when he lost control of his 2004 Chevy Silverado pickup truck. The truck, veering left, went airborne, regained contact with the ground, rolled over and came to rest on its passenger side in the snow-covered center median. The girls, not secured in the seat belts that prosecutors said were in working order, were ejected from the truck and died at the scene of multiple blunt-impact injuries. The sisters had been returning from Boston after meeting one of their favorite YouTube stars. During a plea and sentencing hearing on Tuesday at Grafton Superior Court, Couture — who has a 20-year criminal history in Vermont that includes excessive speeding, DUI, and driving on multiple occasions with suspended licenses — told police he had swerved to avoid striking a deer or moose, but responding officers, however, surveyed the area and found no recent signs of an animal. After blood samples were taken, Couture tested positive for unprescribed buprenorphine and THC.  At the time of the crash, his driver’s license had been suspended in Vermont, and he was driving a truck with a suspended registration. At Tuesday’s proceeding, Couture pleaded guilty and received a total New Hampshire State Prison sentence of 3 to 7 years.