Woman Gets 20 Years In Prison For DUI Death Of Bicyclist

October 29, 2009

Christina Rae Rivkin was sentenced to a total of 20 years in prison for the June death of a Pensacola man riding his bicycle to work so that his wife could use the family’s only car.

Rivkin was sentenced Wednesday for the June 10 DUI death of Michael Steele. After she serves her 20 year sentence in state prison, she will be on probation for another 20 years, and she will never be allowed to have a driver’s license again.

At her sentencing, Rivkin faced up to 20 years in prison on charges of DUI manslaughter, leaving the scene of crash and having her third DUI. She entered a guilty plea on the charges back in September.

When Rivkin hit and killed Steele on June 10, her blood alcohol level was more than three and a half times the legal limit, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. The FHP said Rivkin’s blood alcohol levels tested at .297 and .295. The legal limit in Florida is .08. The FHP said Rivkin was so drunk that she did not know her own name when she hit the bicyclist. She left the scene, and nearly hit a deputy’s cruiser when she returned about an hour later.

The Florida Highway Patrol said Rivkin was traveling westbound on Nine Mile Road when she crossed the white line near Brewster Street and struck Steele as he was riding his bicycle about 11:15 p.m. Troopers said Steele and his bicycle were dragged under Rivkin’s GMC Yukon for about a quarter of a mile. Rivkin then fled the scene.

A passerby called 911 after discovering the body in the roadway. About an hour later, Rivkin returned to the scene, where she “skidded to an abrupt stop nearly striking the patrol car of Deputy Mark Smith,” the FHP report said. She “appeared extremely intoxicated. She smelled strongly of alcoholic beverage and her speech was slurred. She could not walk without assistance. (She) could not remember her name or say where she was,” the report continued.

Rivkin, according to the FHP, refused to perform a breath test, and a blood sample was taken to determine her blood alcohol level.

“He jumped out in front of me. What was I suppose to do?” Rivkin told a trooper at the scene.

The FHP says that the front of Rivkin’s vehicle had damage consistent with hitting the bicyclist, and “there appeared to be blood on the front of her vehicle.”

Rivkin had at least two prior DUI arrests and five other moving violations, according to the FHP.

Steele was riding his bicycle to work as part of the stock crew at the Nine Mile Road Winn Dixie when the accident occurred, according to family members. Steele and his wife, Brittney, 20, only owned one car, and family members said he wanted his wife to have the car for her morning commute. He rode the bicycle so that she did not have to drive him to work so that she would be well rested for her job.

Comments

14 Responses to “Woman Gets 20 Years In Prison For DUI Death Of Bicyclist”

  1. JW on November 16th, 2009 8:42 pm

    The punishments for DUI are ever increasing. Educational programs go on for a year or two. What is it that causes people not to learn? I think mental illness is involved. What else can explain bad choices in the face of such penalties? The thing about drinking and drug offenses is that nobody sets out thinking they are harming anyone. Often it is an escape from significant life problems. The problem is how do we now who has them? Nobody volunteers for treatment. I wonder how many people use alcohol as an over the counter prescription for anxiety and depression disorders? I suppose we gravitate towards harsh life ending penalties rather than figure out where we are going wrong, because it is easier, and it feels good, especially if we don’t have to witness the results. I’m not condoning this. I’m just making a point. I think a lot of the problem lies in children being raised in environments that render them dysfunctional adults. The popular thing to do is to ignore that and take revenge. I admit some of these people are not easy to sympathize with, especially if there has been a tragedy. I just think if we did a better job raising kids and recognizing mental illness, this would be a smaller problem. We build prisons instead….because it creates jobs that don’t require an education. I’m sure this will fire people up but it’s just my take.

  2. Velocentric on October 30th, 2009 8:10 pm

    They have alchohol detection systems in buses in Europe and are having problems with use of hand sanitizers locking out the ignition.

    We have got to stop treating the priviledge to operate a motor vehicle as a right.
    This woman should never have gotten her license back after the first DUI.
    Speeding fines used to be the equivalent of $600.00 that would be a good start.

  3. Just Because on October 30th, 2009 5:04 pm

    Wild Bill,
    According to my math if I don’t drink, then I don’t need to waste the $200 on something that would never need to be used by me, and a breathalyzer in my vehicle won’t protect me from a drunk on the highway. Drinking is a choice, having a accident isn’t. I’m glad you have never been at fault in an accident, neither have I. You nor I have any control over others driving, that could put us in an accident at any time. On the other hand, I made a choice to not drink several years ago. I feel that stricter penalties for DUI would be in order. I feel that if you get arrested for DUI then you should lose your license for life, and it should be enforced, if your caught driving without a license because of DUI, then you should serve time in prison. Why do I feel this way, because we all know the consequence of DUI, and we are free to make a choice in this, either drink and drive, or don’t drink and drive. And like you said, some people would defeat it, I suspect most drunks would, I wouldn’t doubt some drunk would probably stagger out to his car and get his 10 year old kid to blow in the tube.

  4. Wild Bill on October 30th, 2009 9:07 am

    Just Because,
    A whole bunch of people thought (and some still think) seat belts and air bags were/are a waste of money.

    I have never been at fault in an accident, so why should I have to wear a seat belt and pay for air bags on my truck? Because they save lives!

    Mandatory breathalyzers would cost very little in a mass market situation, probably less than a couple hundred bucks after the dealer mark up. Portable breathalyzers are less than $100 online, figure another $100 to tie it in to the vehicle’s ignition system. Seems like a small cost for a big savings in the long run.

    Breathalyzer installed on vehicle $200

    Being hit by drunk driver $5000

    Being killed by drunk driver PRICELESS

    You do the math! You say you support mandatory breathalyzers for anyone caught DUI. Maybe you overlooked the fact that not every drunk driver gets a second chance, for some the first time is the charm that ends their life, or the life of an innocent victim. And yes some people will figure out how to defeat the system so it won’t be 100%. For those who do and are found guilty I would support mandatory lifetime license revocation.

  5. Billy on October 30th, 2009 12:53 am

    Lynn you hit the nail on the head. I think that if they are going to punish people this severely, they should be much more strict on plain ole DUIs. You get to pay a fine for the DUI but if you kill someone while DUI, you get sent to prison for 20 years. Im all for this woman’s sentence being hard and long but I believe the DUI penalties should be much tougher even if you don’t kill someone.

  6. Just Because on October 29th, 2009 10:01 pm

    Justsaying, the invasion of privacy wouldn’t be that big of an issue with me in a case such as this. My problem would be with the cost, I don’t know but I figure that Breathalyzers are probably expensive. Since I haven’t drank a drop of alcohol since April 10, 1986 and don’t intend to drink any in the future, any cost to me in my opinion would be a serious waste of money, with the price of everything else today. As for the government doing it, I would feel the same way about my tax money, if they installed Breathalyzers in millions of cars of people that don’t drink. On the other hand I fully support installing them in vehicles of anyone that has a DUI on their record.

  7. justsaying on October 29th, 2009 11:25 am

    Why not install breathalyzers on ALL cars? No one has the right to drive while over the legal limit. Period. I can hear people saying that this would be an “Invasion” of privacy but how else can we prevent this from happening. No one intends to cause an accident while driving. I think that DUI’s are so tragic because for every other type of crime you MUST have the intent to do the crime. When people get behind the wheel drunk they don’t say “Hey lets go kill someone and see if we can get away with” no matter how irresponsible their actions may be.

    It would be so simple to take the choice, because no one should have the choice anyway, away from them by installing breathalyzers.

  8. robt on October 29th, 2009 11:24 am

    Bleh – last I heard he got a well deserved raise. Nice work officer and keep that scum off our streets anyway you can.

  9. Good on October 29th, 2009 10:43 am

    Finally. Third time’s the charm I guess

  10. Dan H. on October 29th, 2009 10:01 am

    Hey bleh:

    In this country, the accused is innocent unless or until
    proven guilty. That hasn’t changed yet. Let’s not rush to
    judgement.

    Insofar as Rivkin is concerned, she has been found guilty as charged.
    Her punishment was on the light side, but the state prisons in Florida
    are not country clubs! (I worked at one).

  11. Lynn on October 29th, 2009 8:35 am

    This was her third DUI. . . .seems like some punishment should’ve been given for the first two before this poor guy was killed by her. It’s tragic for all the families.

  12. whitepunknotondope on October 29th, 2009 7:24 am

    This is heartbreaking for everyone involved, after reading this story I just felt empty inside.

    No doubt this woman was a menace on the roads and deserves her sentence. Just absolutely tragic.

  13. GRITS on October 29th, 2009 12:49 am

    There’s a lot of difference in a criminal that’s running from the law and a man on his way to work that gets run down by a drunk.

    The tragedy is that a total of three lives are over. The two dead men and the woman that will spend the better part of her life in prison.

    Two of them made very BAD choices. You figure it out.

  14. bleh on October 29th, 2009 12:38 am

    I wonder if that cop in pensacola that ran over the guy on the back and then dragged him down the road will get 20 years? or just time off with pay?

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News