The Arizona Daily Star is reporting that the motorist who killed Albert Brack was sentenced to 33 years in jail.A long-time alcoholic who killed a Tucson bicyclist last fall told his sentencing judge the death penalty would be an appropriate sentence for him and he’s having a hard time accepting the fact he killed someone.
The maximum sentence Edward Gomez Nava, 48, faced under his guilty plea was 36 years. Pima County Superior Court Judge Clark Munger sentenced him to 33 years.
Nava struck Albert Eugene Brack, 56, as Brack was riding his bicycle east on East Escalante Road near South Camino Seco in September 2011.
Brack, who was wearing a helmet and riding in the bicycle lane, died at a local hospital.
Officers found Nava on foot and his abandoned 2006 Ford F-150 pickup nearby.
Nava pleaded guilty to manslaughter and aggravated driving under the influence last month. He was facing between 16 and 36 years in prison.
Nava struck Brack in September near Escalante and Camino Seco. Read the rest of the Star’s story.
Read more about Brack and the crash here.
THIS….is so platinum.
Albert Brack unfortunately will never come back, so this is about all we could hope for. The justice system did what it could. Nava is left to come to grips however he will with what he did and serve his punishment.
It’s unlikely this will resolve much for the Brack family, but maybe now with the trial and sentencing no longer hanging over their heads, the Brack family can hopefully find some peace so that the can move on a bit with their lives.
At the risk of starting a major flame-fest, permit me to say the following:
I come from a family where alcoholism and drug abuse has been a problem for several generations. Fortunately, none of my drinking-and-driving relatives have caused injury or death to someone else.
While alcoholism is not the easiest thing to overcome, it can be done. My wish for all the rest of you is that you exert some sort of positive influence over the problem drinkers and drug abusers in your lives. Guide them toward treatment or support groups if you can. And if they’re impaired, don’t let them get behind the wheel.