Prison for driver in fatal Northeast Phila accident By Robert Moran INQUIRER STAFF WRITER William Halloran Jr. today endured a withering series of statements from the family of a 12-year-old boy he killed while driving drunk on Thanksgiving in 2004, then was sentenced to four to eight years in prison. Halloran, 30, was convicted in March of running down Peter Roberto Jr. with an SUV on Harbison Avenue in Northeast Philadelphia, getting out of the car to see the fatally injured boy, then walking away to find a lawyer. "I never imagined it would be an adult, let alone a father" who would have committed the crime, said the boy's mother, Dolores Roberto, 36, and then leave the child in the middle of the street "like a dead animal." Halloran later turned himself in accompanied by his stepfather, a former police officer who worked in accident investigation. A married father from the city's Mayfair section, Halloran sat in court facing forward with his hands clasped, appearing somewhat dazed, sometimes dropping his head or rubbing the bridge of his nose with a hand that quivered. The packed courtroom was evenly divided with family and friends of the victim and of Halloran. When he was offered a chance to speak, Halloran turned very briefly to the Roberto family to apologize. Facing forward again, he responded to repeated observations by the boy's family that he appeared stone-faced and unemotional during his jury trial. "The truth is," he said with a cracking voice, "I'm scared. I'm confused. I'm deeply saddened by this. I don't know what to do." Maybe the Roberto family will someday forgive him, he said, but "I'm going to have a hard time forgiving myself." A tearful Peter Roberto Sr., 40, asked Judge M. Teresa Sarmina to send a message that drinking and driving will not be tolerated. Halloran, a tall man who wore a black suit, stood as the judge sentenced him to a minimum four years in prison and another four years of probation. And for the duration of any parole or his probation, he will not be allowed to drive, Sarmina ruled. He also will have to serve 100 hours of community service speaking to high school students about the consequences of drinking and driving. Peter Sr., a correctional officer for Philadelphia, said he had hoped for a longer prison sentence, but accepted the judge's decision. He and his family, besides excoriating Halloran, celebrated little Peter in their statements. The boy underwent multiple surgeries for tumors in his ears and needed to wear hearing aids, but that didn't stop him from having a rich childhood or serving as an inspiration to others, his family said. The summer before he was killed, he and some friends started to build an elaborate treehouse. His friends completed the project after his death. "It serves as a tribute to Peter and who he was," his mother said. The family also maintains a memorial web site at www.peterrobertojr.com, which features photos of him riding dirt bikes, fishing and dressing up in costumes. His mother quoted from an essay he once wrote: "I try to get the most out of life."