Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Woman gets 15 years in DUI fatal crash
Driver and victim, who was killed by pool, both pregnant
A pregnant woman was sentenced Friday to 15 years in prison for getting drunk one Sunday afternoon, getting behind the wheel of her car and crashing it into a poolside cabana at the Riverside Hotel in Fort Lauderdale, killing a pregnant woman.
Rosa Rivera Kim, 37, of Plantation, pleaded guilty to two counts of DUI manslaughter for causing the March 18, 2012, deaths of Alanna DeMella, 26, and her unborn son, who was to be named Joshua.
DeMella was seven months pregnant with her first child at the time of her death. She and her husband, Michael, were in Fort Lauderdale for a two-day marriage conference at Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale. They won the trip from their home church in Woburn, Mass.
Michael DeMella suffered only minor injuries. He was in a restroom just a few feet away when Kim’s car crossed a sidewalk, jumped the curb and ploughed into the cabana.
Friday’s sentencing hearing
ran more than four hours and featured gut-wrenching testimony from the defendant, a mother of three who became pregnant five months ago even as the case against her was proceeding, and the family of the victim, a schoolteacher who longed for motherhood and eschewed alcohol.
DeMella was active in her high school’s chapter of Students Against Drunk Driving, and she left her final New Year’s Eve party well before midnight to reduce the chances of getting into an accident with a drunk driver, family members said.
At the time of the accident, Kim’s blood alcohol level was 0.24, three times above the legal limit.
Broward Circuit Judge Bernard Bober heard from numerous defense experts who testified that Kim suffered from treatable disorders not caused by alcohol or drugs. Kim took the stand to apologize to the victims’ family.
“All I can say is I’m so sorry,” she said through tears. “If I could do anything to bring them back, I would … I would have thrown myself in front of a car if I would have seen that happening.”
But DeMella’s husband, mother and sister condemned Kim’s pregnancy as a cynical ploy to gain sympathy. Family members, including DeMella’s father and in-laws, flew in from Massachusetts to attend the hearing.
“It’s amazing how one person could make so many poor decisions,” said Paula Masterson, DeMella’s mother. “You have tried all avenues to evade responsibility for this crime.”
The condemnation of Kim’s pregnancy was repeated by Assistant State Attorney Michael Horowitz, who called it “appalling and manipulative” and asked Bober to impose a 20-year term.
Defense lawyer Amanda Maxwell sought the fouryear minimum allowed by law. Bober choose between the two recommendations. After her 15-year prison sentence, Kim will serve another 15 years of probation. While on probation, she will be required to serve 50 hours of community service every year.
Her driver’s license was permanently revoked.
Kim’s sentence is to begin immediately. Pregnant women in custody are taken to a hospital to deliver the baby. Kim is due at the end of May. Family members testified they will take custody while Kim serves her time. Kim’s family declined comment after the hearing.