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| Matthew Cordle reaches in his pocket for a statement which he read to the court during sentencing Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2013, in Columbus, Ohio. Cordle was sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison for causing a fatal wrong-way crash after a night of heavy drinking, which he confessed to in an online video. |
COLUMBUS, Ohio
(AP) -- A man who acknowledged his confessional video would give
prosecutors what they needed to put him away for a long time for a fatal
wrong-way car crash was proved mostly right Wednesday when a judge
sentenced him to 6 1/2 years in prison.
Matthew
Cordle had faced up to 8 1/2 years in prison for the June crash, which
followed a night of heavy drinking near downtown Columbus and killed a
man. A judge gave Cordle six years instead of eight on a count of
aggravated vehicular homicide but ordered he serve the full six months
for driving a vehicle under the influence of alcohol.
The
drunken-driving charge "is the genesis of why we're here today,"
Franklin County Judge David Fais said. "Had Mr. Cordle not been driving
that vehicle on that early morning under the influence, we wouldn't be
here."
Cordle said before the judge announced
his decision there was no such thing as a fair sentence when it came to
the loss of a life.
"The true punishment is simply living, living with the knowledge that I took an innocent life," Cordle said.
The
judge also fined Cordle $1,075 and revoked his driving privileges for
life. He gave Cordle credit for 45 days he's already spent in jail.
Cordle apologized to the family of his victim, Vincent Canzani.
"It should have been me that night, the guilty party, instead of an innocent man," he said.
Cordle's
guilty plea last month came just a week after he was indicted in a
speedy process absent of the numerous court filings that usually cause
such cases to drag on for weeks or months.
Canzani's daughter asked the judge for the maximum sentence.
"My
father got a death sentence and did nothing wrong," Angela Canzani
said. "After 8 1/2 years Matthew Cordle will still have his whole life
ahead of him. My dad is never coming back."
She
said Vincent Canzani was a talented artist and photographer who enjoyed
working out and spending time with people he cared about. She said her
children and her sister's children will never get to see their
grandfather again.
The judge also read a
letter from Vincent Canzani's ex-wife, who said she believed he would
not have wanted a maximum sentence. She said she believes Cordle will
keep his promise never to drink and drive again.
Cordle's
father, Dave Cordle, told the judge he was "disappointed, disgusted and
heartbroken" at the choices his son made that night. He did not ask for
leniency and told Canzani's relatives his heart was filled with sorrow
at their loss and he hopes they can forgive his son.
In
a 3 1/2-minute video posted online in early September, Cordle admitted
he killed Canzani and said he "made a mistake" when he decided to drive
that night.
"My name is Matthew Cordle, and on
June 22, 2013, I hit and killed Vincent Canzani," he says somberly.
"This video will act as my confession."
He
ends the video, which has been viewed more than 2.3 million times on
YouTube, by pleading with viewers not to drink and drive.
Cordle
acknowledged having a drinking problem after the crash and entered a
treatment program as prosecutors gathered evidence against him. He told
his attorneys early on that he wanted to plead guilty but made the video
against their advice.
Prosecutors said a
heavily intoxicated Cordle denied causing an accident or killing anyone
when he was taken to a hospital after the crash, in which he suffered
broken ribs and a fractured skull. His attorneys said he may have
suffered a brain injury.
Until Wednesday,
prosecutor Ron O'Brien had been seeking the maximum sentence. In brief
remarks during sentencing he asked the judge to impose something "on the
high end."
"Both the state and the Canzani family are happy with the 6 1/2-year sentence that he imposed," O'Brien said after.
Cordle's
attorneys said Cordle was relieved the case was over and he could move
forward with his plan to honor Canzani's memory with an
anti-drunken-driving message.
