Family says plea bargain too kind to drugged driver

PROVO — On Dec. 12, Sharane Haymond will attend the sentencing of the man who caused the death of her 7-year-old daughter, Karlee, when he hit their family minivan while driving under the influence of drugs.

But Haymond says that day will likely bring little in the way of closure because of a plea bargain the Utah County Attorney's Office made with the driver that could greatly reduce his sentence.

"The issue is that I wanted justice for Karlee and for my family, and the prosecutor's office basically had more compassion and caring for the kid that was charged with the DUI than they did for our family," Haymond said.

According to police reports, at the time of the accident on Oct. 31, 2003, Haymond was in a minivan waiting to turn left at a Springville intersection, and began her turn when the light turned red for cross traffic.

Brian K. Miller, then 19, ran the red light and broadsided the minivan. Karlee Haymond suffered severe injuries and died the next day at Primary Children's Medical Center in Salt Lake City.

Miller confessed to police that he was under the influence of OxyContin and was charged with a second-degree felony count of automobile homicide and a third-degree felony count of attempted illegal possession or use of a controlled substance.

But under a plea bargain reached last week, the automobile homicide charge was amended to a third-degree felony and the attempted possession charge was reduced to a Class A misdemeanor.

The sentence for a second-degree felony is five to 15 years in the Utah State Prison, while a third-degree felony is one to five years. A Class A misdemeanor is up to a year in jail. If given the maximum sentence, Miller could serve up to six years in prison.

An attorney at Gregory and Swapp, the law firm where Haymond works as a receptionist, said such a sentence is unlikely.

"Under the matrix for the sentencing, if we have all the information, he could receive probation and not serve a day in jail," attorney Roger Griffin said.

Utah County Attorney C. Kay Bryson, whose office is prosecuting the case, said his office will ask for jail time.

"One of the concessions the defendant wanted was that we would agree not to argue for prison time, but we told him that we would not agree to that," Bryson said.