Woman sentenced to one year in jail after fatal 2012 St. Elmo hit-and-run

A judge Monday sentenced a 57-year-old woman to one year in county jail for a deadly hit-and-run in St. Elmo in 2012.

Betty Mundy handed over her possessions after a sentencing hearing before Hamilton County Criminal Court Judge Barry Steelman and was taken into custody.

"I'm so sorry and I wish I could change this and I know I can't," Mundy said to her victim's family members. "I'm so sorry."

photo Betty Jean Mundy

Mundy took muscle relaxers and Xanax and was speeding on the 4400 block of St. Elmo Avenue and focusing on her food when she struck David Bruce on his moped on Dec. 7, 2012, prosecutors said. She then drove about three-fourths of a mile before hitting another vehicle and a telephone pole, prosecutor Kate Lavery added.

Mundy pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide by recklessness and reckless aggravated assault on Feb. 9, both reduced charges in an agreement that dismissed her other counts of driving under the influence, failure to maintain lane, following too closely, and leaving the scene of an accident.

She also had a prior DUI conviction in 2010 in Georgia, two incidents of swerving in traffic and driving off road, and a history of marijuana use, Lavery said. She pushed for consecutive sentencing, meaning Mundy would have to serve time for each charge.

Defense attorney Ben McGowan argued his client suffered a seizure, said Mundy hadn't picked up new criminal charges or violated any court orders, and pushed for alternative sentencing.

"I submit to the court that alternative sentencing ... is the single best avenue for which this court can continue monitoring Ms. Mundy and ensure that treatment would actually be sought and successfully pursued," McGowan said. "And if not, she can be penalized then."

The judge said he didn't believe the facts pointed to a seizure.

"I respect the defense, and I know you've indicated Ms. Mundy respects the court's prerogative," Steelman said. "But ... I think she's very fortunate she didn't go to the jury on a vehicular homicide charge."

But he also rejected Lavery's push for consecutive sentencing, which is not mandatory in Tennessee unless a person is on parole for a new offense. That was not the case with Mundy, who remained on bond for nearly five years without incident.

Steelman said Mundy's prior criminal history did not rise to the level of dangerous offender and noted that a state probation evaluation determined Mundy had a low risk of reoffending. He settled on the maximum end of an alternative sentence.

He ordered split confinement, where a person spends part of their sentence in jail and the other part on probation, for the vehicular homicide by recklessness charge. That means she spends 11 months and 29 days in jail and the next three years on probation. Because he suspended her probation over 15 years, Mundy can be sent back to custody if she violates her probation during that time frame. He also ordered her not to drive.

"I think too often in the criminal justice system we move far enough down the road that people aren't really sufficiently held accountable for the day, for the moment, for the choice. It becomes so much about what they've done after, and that is relevant," Steelman said. "However, five years removed doesn't change what happened on Dec. 7, 2012. I am ordering a period of split confinement to appropriately hold Ms. Mundy accountable for the decision she made to take someone else's life after she had been engaged in this behavior previously."

Contact staff writer Zack Peterson at zpeterson@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6347. Follow him on Twitter @zackpeterson918.

Upcoming Events