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Man Gets 12 Years In Fatal DUI Crash

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By TODD LESKANIC

tleskanic@tampatrib.com

Published: February 20, 2009

DADE CITY - The family of Kevin Bryant Jr. sat in tense, restrained silence, just feet from Eli Alvarez.

Alvarez's decision to drink and drive ended 8-year-old Kevin's life on May 10, 2007. The boy's family came to court Thursday to watch Alvarez plead no contest to DUI-manslaughter in exchange for a 12-year prison sentence.

Normally, family and friends of the victim are eager to address the judge before sentencing. But in this case, no one spoke. The boy's father, Kevin Bryant Sr., and mother, Heather Eres, were too emotional to give Judge Pat Siracusa their thoughts on Alvarez and the loss of their son.

Even Siracusa, who normally gives an extended statement before sentencing a defendant, had little to add. What he did say, however, encapsulated the tragedy of the case.

"There really isn't anything to be said," Siracusa said. "A child has been lost, nothing can bring him back and nothing about the sentence can bring him back so I'm just going to leave it where it is."

Alvarez, 28, was in the United States illegally and will be deported to Mexico after he serves his sentence. His mother and other family members attended the hearing but allowed defense attorney George Lorenzo to speak for them.

In court, Lorenzo told Kevin's family that Alvarez's mother "prays every day that somehow, if there's a God up there, some peace can be brought to your family from this horrible experience."
Alvarez brought the tragedy on Bryant's family when he decided to drive his Toyota Tundra pickup after drinking. As he drove on County Road 54 just before midnight, Alvarez failed to notice he was fast approaching an SUV stopped at a railroad crossing.

Alvarez's truck slammed into the back of the SUV, pushing it into a passing train. The SUV caught on fire. Passers-by pulled Kevin and his mother from the vehicle, but Kevin was pronounced dead at the scene.

A blood test revealed Alvarez was driving with a blood-alcohol level of .20 percent, more than double the state's limit for impairment.

Troopers with the Florida Highway Patrol arrested Alvarez three days later as he was being released from the hospital.

Kevin's family exchanged hugs outside the courtroom following Thursday's hearing. Some spoke with Alvarez's mother and showed her a montage of pictures of Kevin they had brought to court. Kevin's aunt, Kristy Flynn, was still fighting tears as she left the courthouse.

"I don't agree with it," she said. "He never showed any remorse. I think it should have gone to trial."

Flynn, 34, had a special attachment to her nephew. Her son Jeremy, 14, and Kevin spent a lot of time together. The boys were always over at each other's houses, riding dirt bikes, fishing or shooting BB guns.

Kevin's death put a streak of anger through her normally easy-going son, Flynn said. The ire came not just because he lost a cousin, but because the loss came at the hands of an out-of-control drunk driver.

That anger has subsided, Flynn said, but has turned Jeremy into a passionate voice against drinking and driving.

"He lost more than a cousin," Flynn said. "He lost a best friend."

Reporter Todd Leskanic can be reached at (727) 815-1084.

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