Drunk Driver Who Killed Newlyweds In NJ Sentenced

MAURICE RIVER TOWNSHIP, NJ — A 26-year-old man was sentenced on Monday after he drove drunk and killed a newlywed couple in a 2025 crash, the Cumberland County Prosecutor's Office said.

Levon Woods, of Vineland, was given seven years in jail after he pleaded guilty on June 10 to two counts of second-degree vehicular homicide.

On Feb. 22, 2025, at around 4 a.m., New Jersey State Police responded to mile marker 19.4 along County Route 552 (Millville-Mays Landing Road) for a report of a head-on collision.

Woods was driving when he crossed into oncoming traffic and hit a vehicle.

Thomas Splinter, 57, and Nancy Orellana-Splinter, 29, both of Mays Landing, were both inside and died as a result of the crash.

According to officials, Woods's blood alcohol content was measured at .095 percent. The legal limit is .08 in New Jersey.

Woods, who told police that he may have fallen asleep after drinking cognac at a Philadelphia nightclub before the crash, cried as he apologized for killing the newlyweds on Monday at his sentencing, according to NJ Advance Media.

As part of his sentence, he will have to serve 85 percent before he is eligible for parole under the No Early Release Act.

Woods is also subject to three years of parole supervision when he is released from jail.

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