Bucks Co. Man Who Killed Girlfriend, Left Body In SUV Sentenced

BUCKS COUNTY, PA —A Bucks County man has been sentenced to 25 to 50 years in prison for killing his girlfriend and leaving her body in the back of his car.

Jason K. Lutey, 43, pleaded guilty Tuesday to third-degree murder, admitting he beat 46-year-old Colleen Patterson to death Sept. 7 in New Britain Borough. He admitted he wrapped her bloodied body in a blanket and placed it in the back of his Toyota Highlander SUV before he was arrested.

Authorities said Lutey is a military veteran diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder.

The fatal beating happened at a home along the 100 block of Keeley Avenue, New Britain. Authorities determined Lutey repeatedly struck Patterson until she died. An autopsy revealed extensive internal and external injuries similar to those sustained by a person run over by a car, the Bucks County District Attorney said.

"Patterson was likely awake, conscious and aware during the painful fatal beating," the examiner determined, according to the Bucks County District Attorney's office.

Lutey told his attorney he was planning to leave the scene with Patterson’s body and then kill himself in the woods. But after speaking to his family, he decided to remain at the scene.

Relatives remembered Patterson in their victim impact statements as a caring mother and grandmother who loved to cook for her family.

In addition to third-degree murder, Lutey admitted to additional charges. including possessing an instrument of crime and abuse of a corpse.