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The family of a woman who was killed in a hit-and-run crash in Miami Gardens, Florida, is fuming after the driver refused to apologize in court.
Sharon Cox, 65, was sentenced on Tuesday after she pleaded guilty to a 2023 hit-and-run crash that left Patricia Garner dead and two others injured, according to NBC 6. She was sentenced to four years in prison after Garner’s family members pressured prosecutors to reconsider an earlier plea deal that amounted to significantly less jail time.
According to prosecutors, Cox hit the three people in a Miami Gardens community center parking lot. She was charged with leaving the scene of a crash with serious bodily injury.
During Tuesday’s sentencing hearing, Cox offered no apology to the family of Garner.
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“Ms. Cox didn’t even stand up and say that she was sorry,” said Sandra Welch, Garner’s sister-in-law. “She didn’t say one word.”
According to the report, prosecutors initially offered Cox a plea deal that would have put her in jail for one year. The family was vocal in their disagreement over the plea deal and wanted jail time, resulting in prosecutors rescinding their initial offer.
The new plea deal includes four years in prison for Cox, which Garner’s family still doesn’t think is enough.
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“We miss her, and we will always miss her,” said Allie Mobley, Garner’s sister. “But to get only the amount of time she got for killing her, it hurts.”
Following her four-year prison sentence, under the plea agreement, Cox will serve two years of her probation, must go to traffic school and complete 100 hours of community service. Her driver’s license has also been taken away for five years.
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Andrew Rier, Cox’s attorney, told NBC 6: “The case was resolved to an appropriate resolution where none of the parties involved were fully satisfied. This was a tough case, a tragic accident, and we hope this finality can bring closure to the victim’s family.”
The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s office said the sentence represents what the law allows.
“For every family member in every criminal case, the pain of victimization always cuts deep,” the office said, according to NBC 6. “We understand that though this resolution is what the law allows in this case and had been accepted by the victim’s family, no sentence can ever lessen the loss of a loved one. Our hope is that now they can begin their grieving process and find peace.”
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