Alfreda Nelson received a 15-year state prison sentence for a hit-and-run crash that seriously injured 9-year-old Sawyer Crawley last January.WATCH FULL REPORT BELOW: Driver receives 15-year prison sentence for hit-and-run crash that injured 9-year-old Sawyer Crawley2nd Circuit Judge Brian D. Miller handed down the maximum sentence during Thursday's hearing. Nelson was charged with one count of leaving the scene of a crash involving serious bodily injury. Last month she pleaded no contest to the charge.Authorities said Nelson hit Sawyer with her car while he was riding a small motorbike near the Camelot neighborhood in Crawfordville. The crash left the young boy with serious injuries and required weeks of treatment.During the hearing, Miller heard from a Florida Highway Patrol trooper, Nelson's friends and family, Sawyer's mother, and a statement from Sawyer himself."I don't understand why she left. It makes me sad and angry that she didn't care enough to stop. That accident didn't just changed my life. It changed forever, my life that day. It changed it forever. Thank you," Sawyer's mom read during the hearing.Sawyer's mother, Kaitlyn Crawley, addressed Nelson directly in court."That moment, you had a choice. You could have stopped, you could have helped, you could have shown even the smallest amount of humanity. Instead, you chose to leave my child alone, broken in the road," Kaitlyn said.Miller said the maximum sentence was appropriate due to Nelson's pattern of behavior and choices."So what I see is a pattern of not just in this case, throughout the whole course of this case, but defrauding other people and injuring them as well and not seemingly caring by the consequences of your actions. I find in this case, a maximum sentence is appropriate," Miller said, "because of your choices. Not mine, not Sawyer Crawley's. You chose to leave the scene after you hit that child, is what it comes down to."Miller noted that if Nelson had stayed at the scene, the outcome would have been vastly different."This case, Ms. Nelson, are your entire course of decisions, not just simply the crash itself. That was one thing. Had you done the right thing, the humane thing, the decent thing to do, which is stay on scene and call for help for that child. In all likelihood, you'd be seeing me across the hall for a traffic citation for not maintaining a single lane, and that's about it. You wouldn't be sitting there right now charged with the crime," Miller said.Nelson's attorney, Chris Karpinski, said the defense was surprised by the sentence."It just seems pretty excessive. It's certainly unexpected to get 15 years for that. We don't condone leaving the scene of an accident and Alfreda acknowledge that. She took responsibility for that," Karpinski said.Kaitlyn said the family could not have asked for a better outcome and that Sawyer got justice. She added the sentencing showed how the judge feels for the safety of the community and its children."I just want to thank the community who showed up today, for the ones that prayed for us, the ones that thought about us today, the ones that have reached out and sent me messages, texts, phone calls. I appreciate everything so much from everybody. It's been a journey, and without the community, I don't think we would have made it through. I appreciate it," Kaitlyn said.This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.Want to see more local news? Visit the WTXL ABC 27 Website. Stay in touch with us anywhere, anytime.Like us on FacebookFollow us on Instagram and X. ...read more read less