Delta Airlines pilot pleads guilty to gross vehicular manslaughter

 

SAN DIEGO -- A Delta Airlines pilot who crashed his 1974 Porsche into a pickup truck on a North County road while drunk, killing his girlfriend and uncle and seriously injuring two people in the other vehicle, pleaded guilty Monday to gross vehicular manslaughter and DUI charges.

Brent Nathan Geren, 39, was immediately sentenced to four years in prison, but due to pending surgery, won't report for custody until July 16.

Geren pleaded guilty to two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter and one count of driving with a blood-alcohol level of .08 percent or higher causing an accident that resulted in injury.

Geren's blood-alcohol level was measured at .14 percent after the May 1, 2011, crash, said prosecutor David Hendren.

Deputy District Attorney Tracy Prior said earlier that Geren had been drinking at a restaurant/bar in Cardiff before getting behind the wheel of his Porsche 911 Targa, with his 42-year-old girlfriend in the rear and his 63-year-old uncle in the passenger seat.

Prior said Geren drove 77 mph on winding Manchester Avenue going east, crossed a center divider in a 40 mph zone and struck the pickup on the driver's side. The Porsche burst into flames.

The defendant's girlfriend was ejected and died instantly and his uncle burned to death in the car, while Geren suffered burns over 20 percent of his body and was pulled to safety by witnesses, Prior said.

Investigators found charred beer bottles in the Porsche, Prior said.

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Source:  http://www.10news.com