Parolee gets 50 years for 2022 drunk driving crash that killed 2 Galveston teens, injured 3rd

GALVESTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A 29-year-old man, who caused a deadly crash that killed two Galveston teens less than 8 hours after being paroled, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 50 years in prison on Monday.

Keith Aaron Brazier was charged with two counts of murder and one count of intoxicated assault for the violent crash that killed 14-year-olds Mason Nelson and Sam Mixon on Sept. 2, 2022.

Hannah Jackson, a third teen, suffered a severe brain injury and survived. Two others in their Jeep were not hurt.

With help from a walker, Jackson entered a Galveston courtroom Monday morning. The boys' friends also filled the seats for the hearing. The victims' fathers said no one wanted more trauma.

"Everyone has done such an amazing job. After some soul-searching (for) our families, more trauma, going through the trial was not what we wanted to do," Scott Mixon, Sam's father, explained afterward.

The crash happened in front of Ball High School, where the teens were students, at about 6 p.m. According to investigators, They had just left a volleyball game when Brazier, who was behind the wheel of an SUV and with a blood alcohol content of .217, more than two times the legal limit, slammed into their Jeep.

Just seven and a half hours earlier, Brazier was released on parole from prison for multiple drunk driving convictions. Investigators said he then hit the bars in Galveston to celebrate.

During victim impact statements, which came after Brazier pleaded guilty, Reid Nelson, Mason's father, referenced an enlarged photo of the boys that Jackson took 15 minutes before the crash.

"This is the last picture taken of my son," he said. "And this is the last picture taken of Sam."

Brazier's court-appointed attorney, Calvin Parks, said his client felt remorse.

After the hearing, there were hugs and tears. The victims' families pushed for and approved the plea deal, the Galveston County District Attorney's Office said.

"It is the closing of a chapter. It allows the families to have one less thing to worry about, especially over the holidays, which is what we feel strongly about," Nelson said after court. "It does not make it one thing, one iota better, but it closes that chapter. We take the wins where we can get them."

For more on this story, follow Jessica Willey on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.