On April 25, 2010, Scott Sciple, a decorated marine, drove his car the wrong way on the I-275 freeway. He hit a Chevrolet Malibu driven by forty-eight-year-old Pedro Rivera. Rivera was killed in the collision and his passenger, fifty-three-year-old Carmen Rodriquez-Rivera, was seriously injured.

Sciple was a Marine captain and has served four terms of duty. He served in Kuwait, Afghanistan, and Iraq. He received a Bronze Star and three Purple Hearts.

A year after the crash, Sciple was caught in Macdill Air Force Base, riding his bicycle while drunk. Judge Daniel H. Sleet revoked his bail.

Sciple asked to be sent to a mental health rehabilitation facility instead of to jail. Judge Sleet denied his request.

Defense attorney John Fitzgibbons said that his client had suffered injuries that caused brain damage during his service in the Middle East.

In a hearing before Judge Lisa D. Campbell, Scott Sciple pled guilty. Pedro Rivera’s wife came to the hearing and asked the judge not to send Sciple to prison. She said she would not sue him. Sciple was sentenced to time served and two years of community control. Then he would be on probation for twelve years.

After the hearing, Sciple’s mother, Lynne Sciple, gave the crucifix she had been wearing, to the widow. The two women tearfully hugged.