POMONA — A judge sentenced a West Covina man Wednesday to 17 years to life in prison for a drunken driving crash that killed his passenger, a 19-year-old West Covina woman, last year.

William Garzon, 22, received his sentence from Pomona Superior Court Judge Steven Blades. He was convicted last month of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, driving under the influence, driving with a blood-alcohol level higher than .08 and driving with a suspended license.

The jury hung, however on a murder charge in connection with the March 18, 2011 crash in the 2800 block of Cortez Street in West Covina that killed Niamarie Lopez. Garzon had two previous drunken driving convictions in 2008 and 2010.

Deputy District Attorney Stacy Okun-Wiese, who prosecuted the case, said she will not seek a second murder trial.

“We chose not, at this point, to retry on the murder charge, considering everything and the sentence,” she said.

Though she said she would have preferred to see murder conviction in the case, she was pleased that Blades handed down the maximum sentence allowed under law for the fatal crash.

“I am pleased with that aspect of it,” she said.

A second-degree murder conviction carries a maximum sentence of 15 years to life in prison, the same as a gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated conviction, Okun-Wiese explained.

The difference is that while murders must serve 100 percent of their sentences, those convicted of manslaughter can be eligible for parole after serving 85 percent of their time.

Considering that a successful murder prosecution would not significantly increase the number of years Garzon spends behind bars, the prosecutor said, officials determined it was not necessary to put the families through the stress of a second trial.

Garzon and Lopez, who were acquaintances, had gone out drinking on the previous night, St. Patrick’s Day, and Garzon was driving Lopez home when he crashed, investigators said.

The jury deliberated for about a week before convicting Garzon of manslaughter and deadlocking on the murder charge.

Lopez was a native of West Covina who graduated South Hills High School, family members said. She was working for the Southern California Gas Company as she studied to become a nurse.