PANAMA CITY — A 19-year-old Tennessee man will spend at least 10 years in prison for a drunken Spring Break crash that killed another young visitor to Panama City Beach, a Bay County judge ruled Thursday.
Bruce George, 19, of Nolensville, Tenn., pleaded no contest to DUI manslaughter charges Thursday that stem from a March crash which killed 22-year-old Brandon Beverly, of Knoxville, Tenn. Circuit Judge Michael Overstreet sentenced George to a little more than 10 years in prison, finding the teenager did not deserve treatment as a youthful offender.
In addition, Overstreet sentenced George to speak before high school students two times each year on the dangers of drinking and driving. George also will give the Bay County Chamber of Commerce a presentation on how decisions he made during Spring Break have affected his life, Overstreet ordered.
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“I regret the people who profit from Spring Break aren’t sitting in this courtroom to witness this,” Overstreet said, as the families of both Beverly and George grieved their losses.
It also was disclosed Thursday that Panama City Beach police questioned George 30 minutes before the crash after he had a minor accident, but didn’t arrest him.
George expressed remorse to the court Thursday, apologizing to Beverly’s family members. He pleaded with Overstreet for the minimum sentence of four years.
“I wish every day it would’ve been me instead of him,” George said. “I never wanted to hurt anyone.”
However, family members urged Overstreet to exercise the maximum sentence and were appalled the sentence could not exceed 15 years.
“When you chose to drink and drive, you chose to take my baby’s life,” Brenda Beverly, mother of Brandon Beverly, told George.
Authorities arrived at Thomas Drive near the Signal Hill Golf Course shortly after 9:15 p.m. on March 9 after a 2001 Ford Taurus sedan careened into a 2013 Panther scoot car. George, driving the Taurus, told authorities he had fallen asleep at the wheel after drinking alcohol since about 1:30 p.m. that day.
George veered into the oncoming traffic before crashing into the scoot car. Brandon Beverly, who was ejected in the crash, was taken to a local hospital and later pronounced dead from his injuries.
George’s blood alcohol content was 0.159, nearly twice the legal benchmark at which a driver is presumed impaired, which is 0.08.
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Before George was sentenced Thursday, Prosecutor Bob Sombathy argued George had “a rare moment of intervention” almost 30 minutes before the crash when he backed into a car in a Panama City Beach McDonald’s parking lot. Police interviewed George and allowed him to leave after George admitted he was “slightly” buzzed. Authorities cited a lack of resources during Spring Break for not further pursuing the then-18-year-old. George continued to drive.
“Despite the fact he was impaired at McDonald’s, he made the decision to get behind the wheel,” Sombathy said.
George was allowed to leave with his family Thursday. He was ordered to turn himself in to the Bay County Sheriff’s Office at 5 p.m. Jan. 2.