When Joseph Daniel Garcia, 19, stood before Judge Edgar Acuña, he faced between five and 40 years for causing a rollover crash that killed a friend, left another with permanent brain damage and hurt two others.
Garcia received 7 1/2 years, plus five years' probation.
Acuña knew his sentence Tuesday afternoon wasn't going to please anyone.
"I'm here to do justice, but I'm not sure what order I can make that will feel like justice to both sides," the judge said.
On Aug. 10, 2008, Garcia and his girlfriend, Jessica Parra, left their 5-month-old twin daughters with Parra's mother and went to two end-of-summer parties.
Garcia was driving back from Windy Point on the Catalina Highway about 4 a.m. with Parra and three friends when he moved into the opposing lane of traffic to pass a slower-moving vehicle on a curve. He lost control of the Honda Civic, and it flipped several times.
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Shane Harvey, 17, died in the rollover.
Walid Al-Rasheed received a brain injury so severe he has been unable to return to school because of memory issues, court documents indicate.
Garcia admitted he'd been drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana earlier in the day.
An accident reconstructionist estimated Garcia was traveling at 68 miles per hour when he passed the other vehicle.
Prosecutor Bruce Chalk asked jurors to convict Garcia of second-degree murder, but they convicted him of the less serious charge of negligent homicide. He was also convicted of multiple aggravated assault counts, driving under the influence and endangerment.
Harvey's family told Acuña that Harvey was a gifted athlete and kind person who dreamed of joining the Navy and becoming a firefighter.
"It doesn't matter how long (Garcia) gets or how bad he feels, he still gets to wake up every day," said Brittany Harvey, one of Harvey's sisters.
Defense attorney Kyle Ipson asked for a 5-year sentence.
Garcia said he hopes the victims and their families will one day have "peace in their hearts to ease their pain and suffering."
What he did was "totally unacceptable and it will never happen again," Garcia said.
Acuña cited Garcia's age, lack of criminal history, family support and pretrial behavior as mitigating factors.
Contact reporter Kim Smith at 573-4241 or kimsmith@azstarnet.com
