No contest plea in David Halberstam death

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 21 (UPI) -- The university student driving the car in which Pulitzer Prize-winning author David Halberstam was killed pleaded no contest to his death in San Francisco.

Last April, Kevin Jones, 27, volunteered to drive 73-year-old Halberstam to an interview with professional football great Y.A. Tittle. Tuesday, prosecutors said Jones made an illegal left turn on a red light and his car was hit broadside.

Halberstam's heart was punctured by a broken rib, autopsy records said.

Jones pleaded no contest to the count of vehicular manslaughter and is to be sentenced Feb. 14, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Superior Court Judge Mark Forcum said he would consider sentencing Jones to five to 10 days in jail and allowing him to serve the remainder of the usual 30-day sentence performing community service.

Halberstam wrote more than 20 books and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1964 for his coverage of the Vietnam War while working as a correspondent for The New York Times.