Ann Day is a prominent member of a prominent Pima county family; a former County Supervisor, and was the sister of retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’connor.
Something is rotten in Pima County. It seems to me cases with very similar fact-sets (extreme speed and recklessness, DUI, causing headon) routinely go for manslaughter elsewhere.
Sentence
Jarrad Barnes was finally sentenced 11/18/2019 to only 4 and 3/4 years in prison for the negligent homicide. The other charges were sentenced concurrently, KOLD reports.
I have no idea where the judge came up with 4 3/4, the presumptive sentence for neg hom, a class 4 felony is 6 years. How does this example qualify for just over the minimum of 4?
A Pima County jury likewise acquitted a DUI driver who killed bicyclist Paul L’Ecuyer of manslaughter, also convicting her of the lesser included charge of negligent homicide. Is this a Pima County thing? She received a much longer sentence but not clear how or why she got some consecutive sentences; Barnes’ crimes were all sentenced concurrently.
See more at original article.
I agree, judicial decisions like this deserve scrutiny. Hopefully some day the automobile-era bias against pedestrians and bicyclist injured or killed within the public street right of way fades to the distant past.
… but the victim was a motorist, so that sort of bias couldn’t have been the cause of a light sentence
The real issue is: It seems only the poor or the minorities serve the sentence handed down. Most seem to serve half or less after the publicity dies down. .
Regarding “… Half or less”, no so in Arizona, Truth in Sentencing requires at least 6/7th of the sentence be served, see https://azbikelaw.org/sentencing/