Drunk Driver Sentenced for Manslaughter

A 29-year-old Huntington Beach man pleaded guilty Friday to charges that he killed a Brea woman when his car slammed into hers.

Michael P. Rooney was sentenced by Municipal Judge Robert H. Gallivan to four years in state prison in connection with the death of Donna G. Davis, 34, in the Dec. 17 accident. Davis’ boyfriend, Michael McLaughlin, a passenger in the car, was severely injured in the crash.

Rooney, an unemployed mechanic, pleaded guilty to vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and causing a person bodily injury while driving under the influence of alcohol, court officials said.

“Life has taken a 180-degree turn since the accident,” said McLaughlin, 41, a cabinetmaker and photographer who suffered seven broken ribs in the crash. “We were building a future together, and now it’s gone.”

On Friday, McLaughlin recalled that he and Davis were traveling on Adams Avenue in Huntington Beach to a holiday dinner at Zubie’s Dry Dock restaurant when Rooney careened into them from behind.

The blow sent Davis’ car spiraling into a utility pole, authorities said. Davis died instantly, and McLaughlin and Rooney were rushed to a local hospital.

Davis, an accounting clerk for Fullerton School District, lived with McLaughlin in Garden Grove. They were discussing marriage and were planning to build a house in Parker, Ariz., where they could raise Davis’ 7-year-old son and 10-year-old daughter, McLaughlin said.

Now McLaughlin is unemployed while undergoing physical therapy for shoulder injuries, he said, and Davis’ children are living with their grandparents and aunt.

McLaughlin said he was disappointed that Rooney was sentenced to only four years in prison, the minimum possible sentence in such cases. The maximum sentence is 10 years.

Rooney’s attorney could not be reached for comment late Friday.