"He was my best friend," Richard Prokay told a Lancaster County judge Friday.

But early in the morning of Dec. 4, 2007, Prokay was driving his friends home when he missed a curve in the road and crashed into a stone wall.

His best friend was killed instantly, the judge was told, and Prokay and another passenger were seriously injured.

State police said they found several empty beer cans in the vehicle, and Prokay admitted to the judge that he was drinking at the time of the accident.

Prokay's blood alcohol level was 0.18 percent, more than twice the state's legal limit, at the time of the crash, police said.

Friday, Judge James P. Cullen sentenced Prokay to 4½ to 10 years in state prison for homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence of intoxicants.

And for driving under suspension at the time of the crash, Cullen imposed an additional sentence of 3 months in prison.

Prokay, who pleaded guilty to the charges in May, told Cullen that he and 80-year-old John Yaremchak were best friends.

"He was with me all the time. We lived together," Prokay told the judge. "He is dearly missed by me."

Prokay said he was sorry Yaremchak's daughter was not in court, because "I wanted to apologize."

Assistant District Attorney Christine L. Wilson told the judge that Prokay has a prior record for drunken driving and driving under suspension.

Yaremchak was the front-seat passenger in Prokay's sport utility vehicle when it veered off Route 222 in Strasburg Township, went through a field and crashed into a wall.

Prokay, 41, of New Providence, sustained a crushed hip and rib cage in the accident as well as a punctured lung, defense attorney Beverly Rampaul told the judge.

A rear-seat passenger and the woman Prokay had been dating at the time, Tracey Apostolec, also was seriously injured in the crash, the judge was told, and spent several days in the hospital.

"You were literally drinking and driving" when the vehicle crashed and killed Yaremchak, Cullen said.

"As unfortunate as that is," Cullen continued, "you could have very easily killed anyone else on the road.

"You represent a threat to everyone who operates a vehicle in this community."

Cullen made Prokay eligible for any rehabilitative programs while in state prison.

E-mail: jkelley@lnpnews.com