Man gets 12 years for DUI that killed his cousin

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Brandon James Bartlette has spent the last two-and-a-half years in the Clarendon County Detention Center for his role in the single-vehicle wreck that killed his 22-year-old cousin. He will spend about eight more years in the South Carolina Department of Corrections after a plea to felony driving under the influence and other unrelated charges on Friday in Clarendon County General Sessions Court. Circuit Court Judge Robert E. Hood sentenced Bartlette to 12 years in prison, with credit for time-served, and noted the defendant will have to serve at least 85 percent of the sentence before he is eligible for parole. Barlette was arrested about 5 a.m. Nov. 24, 2014, after driving a 2007 Pontiac G6 off the side of Georgia Pacific Road in Alcolu. The vehicle hit a culvert and overturned in a nearby field, injuring Bartlette and another passenger and killing Shannon Marie Dorrell of Manning. Clarendon County Coroner Hayes Samuels reported at the time that Dorrell died instantly from neck injuries received during the wreck. Bartlette and the male passenger were transported to Palmetto Health Richland in Columbia for severe injuries. During Friday's hearing, Bartlette also pleaded guilty to one count of forgery of a value less than $10,000 and distribution of an imitation controlled substance. According to 3rd Circuit Assistant Solicitor Chris DuRant, Bartlette contacted a confidential informant with the Clarendon County Sheriff's Office in December 2011 to say he had bath salts for sale. "The informant made a purchase, and testing showed that it was not a controlled substance, but the defendant did hold it out there as a controlled substance," DuRant said. "For the forgery, about Feb. 21, 2012, he took a Bank of Clarendon check from a Manning woman and forged it in the amount of $327." DuRant said Dorrell's family "is not necessarily on board with his plea today." "I've had numerous meetings with them, and recommended they be here today," he said. Clarendon Public Defender Scott Robinson said Dorrell's father did attend with Bartlette's mother. "His momma and her daddy are brother and sister," Robinson said. Robinson said his client has never asked for bond, resulting in his remaining at the jail since his arrest in late 2012. "He was honest and remorseful," Robinson said. "He's been trying to resolve this for some time, but there's been some resistance from the victim's family. He's willing to take responsibility and deal with everything that has to be dealt with. This was his cousin. He's as upset and hurt about it as anyone." Robinson said Bartlette is married and has three children, ages 4-7. "He has a 10th grade education and was working (at an industrial plant) when all this happened," Robinson said. "He was a young man, 20 at the time, and made a poor decision. But he did have some things going well in his life. He will have to give those up for some time, and he knows that." Bartlette said his plea can never take away the pain of losing his cousin. "My appearance here today can never eradicate the pain I've caused, and it's a burden that is nearly impossible to bear," he said, reading a statement before Hood. "I'm burdened by what I did, and it's ironic because my memories of Shannon are all I have, and she was the one I could always count on." "But when she needed me most, I was incapable of being there for her," Bartlette said. "I can't bring her back. I can only repent of my sins and ask for forgiveness."