Jurors find a Plant City man guilty in the 2003 accident that killed a New Port Richey resident and seriously injured his wife.
By COLLEEN JENKINS, Times Staff Writer
Published November 18, 2005
NEW PORT RICHEY - Assistant Public Defender Paul Firmani poked every hole he could Thursday in the state's case against his client, 24-year-old Travis Branstetter.
Authorities said Branstetter's reckless driving on June 5, 2003, caused the death of a New Port Richey man and seriously injured his wife. But Firmani argued the Florida Highway Patrol conducted a sloppy investigation and never proved his client was speeding, under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or driving dangerously on purpose.
None of which mattered, prosecutor Eric Rosario said.
"Focus on the defendant's driving," he told jurors. "That is the key for this case."
About 3:15 p.m., after deliberating for about 90 minutes, jurors agreed the head-on crash on State Road 54 just east of Little Road was more than a tragic accident. They found Branstetter guilty of vehicular homicide and reckless driving that caused serious bodily injury.
The Plant City mortgage broker and father of two young children will be sentenced Jan. 13.
He faces between nearly 12 and 20 years in prison for the two charges, prosecutors said. By opting to take his case to trial, Branstetter declined the state's plea offer of three years in prison.
During the three-day trial, Firmani raised questions about the crash investigation. Among his criticisms: Paramedics took only a small sample of Branstetter's blood at the scene before getting called away to another emergency. No one finished the job.
Branstetter wasn't charged with any crimes until five months after the crash. Investigators initially classified the case as careless driving, the defense attorney said. "We're just asking the Florida Highway Patrol to do their job fairly, competently and without bias," Firmani said.
"Why not lock him up if they really believed he was reckless?"
Rosario asked jurors to remember that 61-year-old John Branciforte was dead, and his wife, then 65-year-old Wanda Branciforte, had to learn to walk again because of extensive injuries.
And that a key state witness testified to watching Branstetter swerve on and off the road for 7 to 10 miles before the accident.
When Branstetter heard the verdict, he crumpled onto the defense table, his shoulders heaving from quiet sobs.
A free man until Thursday, Branstetter was led from the courtroom in handcuffs.
The jurors and the judge also left. Firmani stayed seated, staring straight ahead and speaking to no one.
Colleen Jenkins covers courts in west Pasco County. She can be reached at 727 869-6236 or cjenkins@sptimes.com
