JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. – A 46-year-old woman who struck and killed a man walking on a Jacksonville Beach sidewalk more that two years ago was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in prison, followed by three years of probation and 300 hours of community service.
Jacksonville Beach police said Deborah Brewer was driving a Ford Expedition just after midnight Jan. 9, 2015, that jumped the curb of a parking lot on 4th Avenue North and accelerated down the grass and sidewalk, striking 24-year-old Michael Gunderson, who died at the scene.
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According to the police report, Brewer had been drinking and got into a fight with someone in a cab prior to the accident. Police took a blood sample from Brewer to determine if she was under the influence.
Brewer was questioned at the scene, but not arrested until about a month later.
"What we have to do is to make sure we have all of our evidence in place," said Jacksonville Beach police Cmdr. Mark Evans. "Therefore, rather than doing a breathalyzer at the scene, we do a blood draw. The reason we do a blood draw is you get better detail of what's in that person's system -- whether alcohol or drugs -- and that does take some time doing toxicology."
Gunderson was out with friends at the end of a week-long vacation and left Harmonious Monks just after midnight to get some sleep before driving back to Wisconsin on Sunday.
Police said Brewer had left a parking lot and accelerated at a high rate of speed down the grass and sidewalk, heading east on Fourth Avenue. After hitting Gunderson, the SUV hit a palm tree, a parked Honda Civic and then rear-ended a Jacksonville Transportation Authority trolley.
News4Jax found Brewer had been arrested at least twice before, including a 2006 charge of battery in Jacksonville Beach and a DUI arrest in St. Johns County, also in 2006. She was given a speeding violation in February and had a psychiatric examination under the Baker Act in January 2014.