Hyde Park man convicted of killing passenger in his pickup by driving into a tree

A Suffolk Superior Court jury yesterday convicted Gregory Colandris, 24, of motor vehicle homicide and leaving the scene of an accident causing death for a crash Nov. 23, 2013 at the Hyde Park/Dedham line that left his passenger dying in the front seat as he ran away.

The jury acquitted Colandris of a charge of manslaughter by motor vehicle, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's office.

A judge sentenced Colandris to 2 1/2 to 3 years in state prison, the DA's office says, adding he was also sentenced to five years of probation - with random alcohol and drug screens. He will also be unable to get a driver's license for 15 years.

Prosecutors said Colandris drove into a tree on the Dedham Parkway around 2:30 a.m. that morning. Dedham police officers, the first on the scene, found a woman, later identified as Mercedes Leary, 25, of Hingham, unresponsive in the passenger seat. The driver's seat was unoccupied.

A State Police tracking dog followed Colandris's scent into Boston, then lost it in the thick woods in the area. When State Police finally tracked down Colandris's Dell Terrace address later that morning - in part through the victim's phone history:

He came to the door with blood on his head and clothing. He smelled of alcohol. Troopers took him into custody and, at the barracks, blew a .037 on a Breathalyzer.