LEWISBURG -- One of the teens jailed for throwing rocks off an overpass in Union County has now been paroled.
19-year-old Keefer McGee was one of four teenagers convicted of throwing rocks onto Interstate 80 which left a woman severely injured.
Keefer McGee is now a free man after a judge released him from prison on parole despite strong objections from the Union County District Attorney.
The judge said McGee served 11 ½ months behind bars which was his minimum sentence.
Tom Clouser is the McGee family's neighbor in New Columbia.
“People make mistakes. They do, and he just hung out with the wrong crowd. If he wouldn't have hung out with the wrong crowd, he wouldn't be in the situation he is,” said Clouser. “I feel sorry for him. I really do because he just ruined his life.”
McGee was one of four teens convicted and locked up for throwing rocks off an overpass and onto Interstate 80 back in 2014.
Those rocks hit Sharon Budd as she was riding in a car with her family who had been traveling from their home in Ohio.
“Wrong kids, he was with the wrong kids,” said Tessa Batman from Milton. “I went to school with Keefer. I never had any problems with Keefer. He actually is a really good kid so I`m glad he didn`t have any troubles and followed what he was supposed to do.”
When McGee was sentenced last year to 11 ½ to 23 months in jail, Sharon's husband, Randy Budd, had expressed shock as to how short the sentence was.
Robert Kare agrees it was a light sentence.
“It's almost unforgivable. They need to do some time, big time,” said Kare.
Since the rock throwing incident, Randy Budd had been working on getting legislation here in Pennsylvania that would put fencing along overpasses. Budd had already been successful in getting a similar bill passed in his home state of Ohio.
Sadly, Randy Budd died earlier this month, from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The Union County District Attorney blamed Budd's suicide on those teens who injured Budd's wife.
“It's awful,” said Kare. “It's a tragedy that has no ending. Everybody's going to live with this for the rest of their lives.”
Senator Gene Yaw had been working with Randy Budd on that legislation and says shortly before Budd died he sent Yaw a text asking to him to please settle the fence issue.
Yaw says he is actively working on the bill.
