A man that failed to accept a plea deal in a DUI that involved the death of a 13 year-old girl and other criminal charges, has been found guilty and may be spending up to 30 years behind bars, as reported by CBS Miami.
On March 3 a jury convicted S.G. of DUI manslaughter, vehicular homicide, and leaving the scene of an accident.
Before being found responsible for the death of K.C., S.G. spent time in the arms of family members that had attended the proceedings. After the verdict was announced he was taken into custody.
Judge Ellen Venzer denied S.G.'s defense attorney's request for bond before sentencing. The judge cited that since the defendant didn't show up in court until he was an hour late gave her "great pause" in agreeing to any requests.
K.C.'s sister and mother wept when the verdict was read.
K.C.'s mother told reporters, "Not only did we have to live with this once, but having to go through this all over again this trial is bringing up a lots of painful memories, all because someone won't take responsibility…"
K.C.'s father commented, "Thank God justice prevailed" and then thanked Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the prosecution, the police officers involved in the case and the jury.
During the trial S.G. had unsuccessfully claimed that K.C.'s father had run a red light and was at fault for the collision.
K.C.'s sister added, "This is an example to all of you out there to never get behind the wheel while impaired. I lost my sister—we all lost somebody. Unfortunately that family…(S.G.'s) family…has to say goodbye to their son as they take him away—that's not something I wanted. I just wanted justice and mistakes to be learned from."
There were three days of testimony, which included two witnesses for the defense.
S.G.'s attorney Bruce Lehr said that his client was "very confident we can appeal it–it's one of his rights. As to what the appellate court does I never guess what a court's going to do."
According to Dr. L.R., a toxicologist called to testify, S.G.'s blood alcohol content was 0.26 – over three times the legal limit on April 13, 2012 when he crashed into the minivan driven by K.C.'s father on the Miami-Dade busway.
As S.G. had claimed that the minivan had not obeyed a red light, a traffic engineer with Miami-Dade was called to testify. The engineer, H.H., said that scenario put forth by S.G. was impossible. There are sensors on the busway that prevent a green light from illuminating if the vehicle is going over 15 miles per hour, otherwise there would be a delay of 55 seconds before the light changes to green.
Prosecutors argued that S.G was driving 80 mph at the time of the collision. The force of the impact ripped the minivan in half. S.G.'s vehicle then crashed into a tree before spinning around five times. His vehicle finally came to a stop when it was almost half the length of a football field away from the original crash site.
After his vehicle stopped S.G. did not call 911 or offer help to the family in the minivan. Instead he staggered off and tossed his identification into some bushes.
S.G. rejected the offer of a plea deal before the trial started. His sentencing date has yet to be scheduled and he faces up to 30 years in prison.
Contact a DUI attorney for any charges that you face that are connected to driving under the influence. Discussions about plea deals should be made with you and your attorney, so that you are assured of the most learned advice.