Prison term for drunken hit-and-run driver

A four-time drunken driver was sentenced to nine years and eight months in prison Friday for crashing his truck into two teenage girls waiting at a bus stop in Santa Rosa in January, severely injuring both of them.

Judge Elliot Daum said the term, less than the maximum 12 years and eight months prosecutors wanted, was appropriate because Michael Tweedie, 35, admitted his guilt early in the court process.

Tweedie had been convicted of three DUI s prior to the Jan. 3 crash on Yulupa Avenue that injured Cruz Pineda, 13, and her sister Deysi, 16, as they stood with their father.

In court Friday, Tweedie appeared to minimize his behavior in a statement he read aloud.

He said he was now focused on the Pinedas’ feelings, not “feeling sorry for myself because I got drunk after the accident.” He said he was “sorry for what happened,” but only acknowledged “driving like a maniac” and “leaving the scene of an accident,” not – according to police reports – drinking vodka and Crystal Light for breakfast.

Tweedie also described how he fled the crash site, leaving his mangled truck, two bloody victims and a devastated father in his wake: “My feet carried me away in shock.”

Tweedie’s attorney asked the judge to give less than the 10 years he earlier indicated he’d order, arguing that Tweedie would be housed with more serious criminals if his conviction was a decade or longer. Daum agreed, shaving a few months off Tweedie’s term and having Tweedie waive about three months of credit for time already served.

Prosecutor Barry McBride argued for the maximum term for Tweedie, noting the defendant’s denial of responsibility.

“In light of the harm Mr. Tweedie has caused and his prior record, 12 years and eight months is appropriate,” he said.