SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) A 19-year-old woman was sentenced to
six years in prison for her role in a drag racing accident that
killed two men when her speeding Mustang struck a van that
exploded.
Erin Gormley of San Clemente cried as she apologized to the
families of the men killed in the November 2001 accident. She
kissed her father before being taken into custody.
``I had absolutely no intention of killing two people,'' she
said Friday as she begged the families for forgiveness.
Gormley was convicted in August of vehicular manslaughter,
engaging in a speed contest and driving under the influence of
alcohol and marijuana.
Citing Gormley's ``sincere remorse,'' youth and lack of criminal
history, Orange County Superior Court Judge James P. Marion said he
considered offering the college student probation.
But, after she tested positive for alcohol a month after the
accident during routine testing, he settled on the prison term.
Gormley also was ordered to pay $30,000 in restitution.
Gormley was racing a black Mustang at about 75 mph on Pacific
Coast Highway near Del Obispo Street in Dana Point when she slammed
into a van that was making a left turn, prosecutors said. Killed
were Raymond Shelly, 40, and Jose Valverde, 47.
(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)