Angenette Marie Missett went viral with her smiling mugshot after a DUI arrest
A drunk driver whose smiling mugshot went viral after a fatal crash has been sentenced to 11 years in prison.
Angenette Marie Missett, 45, sobbed during the sentencing hearing on Thursday in Ocala, Florida as begged forgiveness from the family of 60-year-old Sandra Clarkson.
‘I am truly, truly sorry and if I could change spots with your mother I would in a heartbeat. I am sorry. I am sorry. I am truly, truly sorry,’ Missett said before she was sentenced, WESH-TV reported.
Clarkson died after Missett rear-ended the sedan she was riding in on a highway in Orlando just before noon on May 10, 2018.
In a victim statement, Clarkston’s daughter told the court about the devastating impact of Missett’s actions.
‘I lost my only remaining parent because of the defendant’s selfish and conscious decision to drink and drive,’ Clarkston’s daughter, Keonna Sciacca said in court.
Angenette Marie Missett, 45, sobbed during the sentencing hearing on Thursday in Ocala, Florida as she begged the victim’s family for forgiveness
Despite her pleas, a judge sentenced Missett to 11 years in prison at the hearing
The family still have Clarkson’s totaled car, and had it towed to the courthouse on Thursday
The family still have Clarkson’s totaled car, and had it towed to the courthouse on Thursday as powerful statement for the sentencing hearing.
After pleading no contest to manslaughter, Missett faced a minimum of four years in prison and a maximum of 15 years.
Missett is seen in a second mugshot after her charge was upgraded to manslaughter
Judge Steven Rogers handed down the sentence of 11 years
After the crash, Missett told police that she had been distracted because she dropped her phone, but a field sobriety test revealed that her blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit.
The driver of the sedan, 18-year-old Shiyanne Kroll, walked away with minor injuries, but her mother Clarkson suffered critical injuries and died in the hospital days later.
Missett was married one week after the crash, dropping her maiden name of Welk.
Her original mugshot when she was charged with DUI causing great bodily harm sparked outrage because had a big smile on her face.
A new mugshot was taken on May 18, 2018 when charges were upgraded to manslaughter, showing a grimmer visage.
Shiyanne Kroll, 18, center, was driving the car that Missett rear-ended. Kroll walked away with minor injuries but her mother, Clarkson, right, who was in the passenger seat, suffered critical injuries and died in the hospital days later
Missett was driving her 2011 Chevrolet Avalon on US Highway 27 when she failed to break in time and slammed into Kroll’s Hyundai Elantra, sandwiching it between the Avalon and a tractor-trailer in front of them.
Missett was arrested at the scene of the crash after police smelled alcohol on her breath and a breathalyzer indicated her BAC was .172, more than double the legal driving limit.
The mother-of-one was charged with driving under the influence, DUI with property damage and DUI with great bodily harm and posted bond soon after being taken to Marion County Jail.
Clarkson, a mother-of-three, was taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center where she underwent several operations but was left paralyzed and brain-dead, family members said.
When they saw the beaming smile on Missett’s face in her mugshot, the family was outraged, calling for the 40-year-old to be given the maximum sentence.
‘That disgusts me and that means she has no remorse for what she did at all and I hope that judge sees that picture and says the same thing,’ Kroll told ClickOrlando days after the accident.
Missett’s vehicle rear-ended Kroll’s vehicle so hard that it was sandwiched between the tractor-trailer ahead of them, as shown in the screen grab from the crash site above
Clarkson’s family was outraged when they saw Missett’s smiley mugshot. (pictured) Kroll said: ‘That disgusts me and that means she has no remorse for what she did at all’
The 18-year-old’s sister Keonna Sciacca said: ‘It’s destroyed us. Our lives are changed forever.
‘It’s definitely wrecked our family forever, not just temporarily, this was a permanent thing that [Missett] did.
‘[I’m] trying to cope with the fact I won’t see her walk again, she won’t be home when I get home from work or in the mornings when I get home from work. I won’t be able to talk to her, I won’t see her laugh, she won’t see me laugh. I can’t hug her I can’t tell her: ‘Goodnight, I love you.”
On Saturday the family’s protests were answered and police arrested Missett on DUI manslaughter charges. Court records indicate that she has posted $30,000 bond.
The penalty for DUI manslaughter in Florida is a minimum of 124.5 months in prison.
Missett, a mother-of-one, was re-charged Saturday. Court records show she has posted bond
After receiving the news Sciacca said she was upset that Missett was released at all.
‘I think she should still be sitting in jail,’ she told Click Orlando. ‘It’s like a murder case, like you shot somebody.’
Sciacca added that she hopes others will pay attention to this tragedy and choose to avoid driving while intoxicated.
‘If we can get a couple people to stop and think and take a different approach to going out and partying so this doesn’t happen to them or someone else’s family, that’s the good that came out of this,’ she said.