A man charged in a fatal 2011 wrong-way wreck on the MacArthur Causeway took a plea deal Monday that will send him to prison for eight years.
Omar Bravo, 25, also faces seven years of probation after his release.
He faced charges of vehicular homicide and driving under influence causing manslaughter, according to online Miami-Dade court records, in the crash that killed driver Matthew Montenegro, 27, on the causeway in February 2011.
Bravo got a chance to address the Montenegro family in a Miami-Dade courtroom Monday.
"I just want to say I'm really sorry for what I did, my actions. I feel so horrible about the decision that I made," Bravo said.
The Montenegros pushed for Bravo to serve the maximum amount of time in prison to send a statement to those who consider drunk driving. But Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Maria Elena Verde disagreed.
"I do not believe that the maximum sentence is appropriate in this case. I do not believe that the 15 years is a fair sentence; but, I do not believe that two to four years is appropriate either," she said.
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The judge added, "I don't think that Mr. Bravo would learn a lesson for only two years or four years in state prison, I think something more appropriate would be eight years in state prison, and I think that he needs to serve the seven years following that on probation."
