HOLLAND — The mother of three children killed in a rollover crash in February 2022 has withdrawn a no contest plea after Judge Jon Hulsing sentenced her to a minimum of more than quadruple her plea agreement.

Leticia Marie Gonzales, 31, of Holland, entered her plea in front of Hulsing in the Ottawa County 20th Circuit Court on Thursday, April 13. A no contest plea is not an admission of guilt, but is treated as such in determining a defendant’s sentencing.

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Gonzales was charged last July with three counts of operating while intoxicated causing death for the Holland Township crash in which three of her children, all under age 5, died.

As part of her plea agreement, two counts of OWI causing death were dropped. The agreement outlined a sentence of 365 days in the Ottawa County Jail. On Thursday, June 8, Hulsing sentenced her to 4-15 years in prison instead.

'"After reviewing the pre-sentence report, the court cannot and will not follow the plea agreement," Hulsing said. "Rather, the court will impose a sentence of imprisonment of 48 months to 180 months with credit for 41 days previously served."

After a brief recess, Gonzales withdrew her plea.

Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jay Tubergen told Hulsing the family of the victims had seen and approved the plea agreement.

The incident occurred Feb. 17, 2022, when Gonzales was driving with her children Josiah, Jerome III and Jeremiah westbound on James Street when her vehicle drifted across the center turn lane, crossed both eastbound lanes of James Street, hit a curb and exited the roadway.

The vehicle rolled, landing on its roof in a pond. Gonzales was able to exit the vehicle, but all three children were trapped in icy water for 10-17 minutes. First responders extricated them, but Jerome and Jeremiah were pronounced dead at the scene. Josiah died several hours later at an area hospital.

According to a probable cause affidavit, Gonzales misused a prescription drug hours before the crash, with elevated levels of methadone in her system.

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While it's legal to drive while taking methadone in Michigan, the drug — sometimes prescribed to treat an opioid use disorder — can be abused.

The affidavit states Gonzales took a prescribed dose of methadone at a clinic the morning of the crash, but a witness said they gave her another, not prescribed dose a few hours before the crash.

The case will now be scheduled tentatively for a four-day trial.

— Contact editor Cassandra Lybrink at clybrink@hollandsentinel.com. Contact reporter Mitchell Boatman at mboatman@hollandsentinel.com.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Mother in Holland triple-fatal rollover withdraws plea after judge sentences her to 4-15 years