The former Onondaga County district attorney's investigator involved in a deadly hit-and-run in 2017 has been released on parole two years before his full sentence would have been completed, according to the New York State Department of Corrections. 

Peter Rauch, who has served four years of his six-year sentence following a guilty plea in the March 2017 death of 18-year-old Seth Collier, underwent a parole hearing in July. 

Rauch admitted to driving drunk when he hit and killed Collier before leaving the scene of the crash.

A Syracuse Police Department reconstruction of collision report, obtained by Spectrum News 1 in 2018, revealed Rauch had reportedly drank for nearly nine hours, consuming a minimum of 17 drinks at three separate establishments from 4:15 p.m. to 1 a.m. before hitting Collier with his car at 1:29 a.m. on March 21, 2017.

Rauch was first eligible for parole in 2019, which was denied.

Oswego County District Attorney Gregory Oakes responded to the early release announcement in a statement Thursday morning, saying in part, "My heart goes out to Seth‘s parents and family today. I cannot imagine the pain of watching the person who killed your child being released from prison after only four years."  

"Peter Rauch’s release is made possible by systemic issues that need to be addressed at the state level, or else more victim families will experience the same injustice," Oakes continued. "Our current DWI laws are inadequate. The state legislature needs to increase penalties for fatal DWIs so that prosecutors and judges can hold offenders accountable to the appropriate degree. The fact that vehicular manslaughter is punished the same as possessing a forged check is insulting and unjust."