Rachel Schidecker tearfully apologized for causing the automobile crash that took the life of Chereece Rule and caused life-changing injuries to Rule's friend, David Wilson.
Schidecker, 20, of Laura in Miami County, was sentenced Tuesday to three years in prison for six counts related to driving drunk the wrong way up Interstate 75 and causing a chain-reaction crash.
"I am very sorry and I will forever regret the night of Aug. 11, 2012," Schidecker told Montgomery County Common Pleas Court Judge Michael Krumholtz. "I know that doesn't change anything or remove anyone's pain, anger, grief or disgust."
Krumholtz, who called the case a "tragedy," also ruled that Schidecker will lose her driver's license for life, will serve an additional 30 days in local jail, must pay court costs, a $400 fine and must serve three years of post-release control.
Schidecker, who had a blood-alcohol level of .236 the night of the crash, said "there is no excuse" for her actions and that she has struggled with addiction for years.
Wilson and the family of Rule appeared via video conference from Kansas City.
Rule's mother, Jacqueline Johnson, told Schidecker: "Your apology is accepted ... What I'd like to see, Rachel, is that no other mother, or family, will ever have to go through this."
Wilson did not comment.
The most serious charge, aggravated vehicular homicide, could have been punished by between two and eight years in prison, a $15,000 maximum fine and a multi-year or permanent revocation of her driver's license. The other two most serious counts have maximum sentences of one to five years in prison.
"These cases are difficult for everybody," prosecutor Tracey Ballard Tangeman said. "We obviously had advocated for five years, but we certainly respect the judge's sentence... . Ms. Schidecker's been given an incredible opportunity and we hope she takes advantage of that."
The courtroom was mostly filled with many of Schidecker's family and friends. Defense attorney Dennis Lieberman said, "Rachel Schidecker is a good person who made a terrible mistake."
Lieberman asked the judge to consider the 15 months of home detention and the addiction counseling his client sought by herself.
"I feel in my heart that Chereece Rule is my angel," Schidecker said. "Because in a way she saved my life that night."
Apart from the criminal case, Johnson and Wilson have sued Schidecker and her family for wrongful death and injuries Wilson suffered.
The suit claims Wilson's injuries are permanent and that his medical bills have exceeded $287,000. It alleges Schidecker caused the death of Rule and that her mother negligently entrusted her vehicle to her daughter. The suit seeks unspecified damages in excess of $25,000.
Police say Schidecker, then 18, drove her 2002 Ford Explorer the wrong way up I-75 for nearly four miles and then hit the Chevrolet Blazer driven by Wilson. The impact sent the Blazer into a tractor trailer rig, where it was dragged down the highway before bursting into flames.
