A Maine truck driver will spend five years in prison after being convicted of manslaughter for his role in a crash that killed a Falmouth couple on the Maine Turnpike in 2021.

David Herring, 42, formerly of South Portland, was sentenced by Justice Richard Mulhern to concurrent sentences of 10 years with all but five years suspended, York County District Attorney Kathryn Slattery announced Tuesday. Herring’s sentence also includes four years of probation for each manslaughter charge.

Herring was driving a tractor-trailer on the turnpike in Kittery on Jan. 12, 2021, when he became distracted and ignored signs that warned of traffic delays ahead, according to the district attorney’s office. He was traveling 57 mph when he failed to stop for the slowed traffic and his truck crashed into the car, pushing it under a tractor-trailer that was hauling large paper rolls. The car had been driving at just 3 mph when it was hit.

Geoffrey and Elizabeth Gattis, both 68, died at the scene.

Elizabeth “Betsy” and Geoff Gattis. Press Herald photos

Investigators later determined that Herring was streaming a Netflix show about teenage magicians on his cellphone as traffic slowed in the northbound lanes in front of him. Herring’s attorney said after he was charged that the truck driver was not watching the show but preferred to listen to the streaming service instead of the radio to avoid flipping through stations while driving.

Geoff Gattis retired in 2018 as executive vice president of Bath Savings, where he had worked since 1992. Elizabeth “Betsy” Gattis was a retired longtime copy editor at the Portland Press Herald and Maine Sunday Telegram.

The couple had two children and a grandson. They were on their way home after a visit with their grandchild when the crash took place, according to family members and friends.

“We are very sorry for the loss the Gattis family suffered. Distracted driving is a serious problem in Maine and in this case resulted in a tragedy that could have been avoided,” Slattery said in a statement. “We hope this sentence will raise awareness of the importance of paying attention to your surroundings and not to be distracted by phones or other devices while driving.”