Deadly Red Light Runner Gets 2 Years In Prison

A 21-year-old San Clemente man pleaded guilty today to gross vehicular manslaughter for a crash that killed a young woman in Lake Forest and was immediately sentenced to a two-year prison term.

Jose Javier Fernandez Ramirez, who would have faced up to six years in prison if convicted at trial, accepted a plea bargain from prosecutors, Deputy District Attorney Nancy Hayashida said.

Orange County Superior Court Judge Craig Robison sentenced Ramirez, who will have to serve at least half of the prison term, Hayashida said.

Ramirez was eastbound on Bake Parkway in a Toyota pickup truck about 11:10 a.m. on Jan. 14, 2011, when he drove through a red light at North Pointe Drive and crashed into the passenger side of a Hyundai driven by Nicole Davenport, who was making a legal left turn, Hayashida said.

The light was red for more than five seconds and Ramirez was driving just under 70 mph where the speed limit was 50 mph, Hayashida said.

Davenport, 23, of Anaheim, was pronounced dead at Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo less than an hour after the collision.

Ramirez's attorney, Stephen Rios, said initial reports had his client driving closer to the speed limit. Ramirez was daydreaming about having saved up enough money to get his own vehicle when he drove through the red light, Rios said.

Ramirez was on a lunch break from work, driving back to the store where he worked, when the collision happened, Rios said.

"This is a case of no drugs, no alcohol, no texting, no cell phone use and no erratic driving other than his speed," the attorney said.

He said his client is remorseful and sent a letter to the victim's family 14 months ago, "expressing his sincere grief and begging for their forgiveness. He told them that with the help of God, he will dedicate the rest of his life in honor of their daughter."

The victim's grandmother, Ann Duffin, spoke out about her family's loss before the judge sentenced the defendant.

"Since her death, Nikki has missed out on her brother's birthday, Valentine's Day, her own and her twin's birthday, her best friend's birthday, every holiday, and the list will grow as the years go on," she told the judge.

"None of us will ever again hear her goofy laugh, or see her brilliant smile, or hear her high heels clicking down the hall," Duffin said. "No one knows what she might have done because she never got the chance. No one knows who she might have met, but we all know that everyone she did meet was impacted by her passing."