Norwegian gets prison term for wrong turn in Arizona

WINSLOW, Ariz. (AP) — A Norwegian man who took a wrong turn onto a one-way street in an Arizona town and drove through a street festival has been sentenced to more than seven years in state prison.

John Kristoffer Larsgard, 33, was convicted of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and six other charges in Navajo County last month. A reporter for Norway’s largest paper, VG, wrote about the trial in March, drawing international attention.

Larsgard’s lawyer said the case is a miscarriage of justice involving a confused driver. The county prosecutor said Larsgard turned his car into a weapon, hitting one woman and nearly running over several other people.

Larsgard and his mother, Liv Larsgard, of Oslo, were driving across the U.S. when they had car trouble in Winslow, Ariz., last September, The Arizona Republic reported (bit.ly ). They left the car there, got a rental car in another town and returned to pick up their possessions.

When they arrived back in the northwestern Arizona city made famous by the 1972 Eagles song “Take It Easy,” they found an annual festival celebrating the song under way. Musicians, vendors, food tents and people crowded the streets.

Faced with numerous street closures, the pair soon were lost, and everyone agrees John Larsgard turned onto a crowded one-way street headed the wrong way. What happened next is in dispute.

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Larsgard apologized Thursday, blaming his state of mind for his erratic driving.

Candelaria said all his client was trying to do was leave as quickly as possible. The judge and jury rejected that explanation at his trial, and Larsgard is now awaiting transfer to Arizona’s prison system to serve a 7 1/2 year sentence.