Amanpaul Singh Phangureh, 27, of Tracy, expressed remorse and

apologized to the family of Pawiterjit Aulkh, the 30-year-old Tracy man who was

killed in the passenger’s seat during a late night crash on Jan. 5 on MacArthur

Drive.

“My mistake was I chose to drink and drive that night. I

wish I could go back and be in Peter’s spot. I’m very sorry,” he told the

family.

But Judge Richard Mallett said it was clear that Phangureh

was out for a night of drinking on Jan. 5, and pointed that his previous

encounters with police included three arrests for resisting officers and

disorderly conduct, all misdemeanors. His blood-alcohol content after his

arrest was .18, more than twice the level that the state considers a person to

be intoxicated.

He pointed out that Aulkh, who died at the scene, was drunk

too, with a blood alcohol content of .32, but Mallett said that only increased

Phangureh’s responsibility to his friend.

“It’s fairly obvious to me that the victim was vulnerable,”

he said. “You were in fact the driver who had control of the car the whole

evening. You did have a position of trust.”

Phangureh was originally charged with gross vehicular

manslaughter and felony drunken driving with enhancements for causing great

bodily injury. He pleaded guilty in September to the single lesser charge of

vehicular manslaughter.

Mallett denied defense attorney Tim Rien’s request for

probation, but also said that since Phangureh has no prior felony convictions

he would impose less than the maximum four years in prison.

Mallett ordered Phangureh to pay restitution to Aulkh’s family

for $2,900 in burial costs, added a $3,000 fine and warned him that if he ever

causes the death of another person while driving drunk he would be charged with

murder. The conviction also counts as a “strike,” meaning that any future

conviction for a violent crime would result in a double sentence, and a third

could lead to life in prison.

Phangureh also faces a civil lawsuit filed in San Joaquin

Superior Court in April by Aulkh’s family.

Aulkh’s sister, brother and niece were in the courtroom on

Wednesday, but said nothing at the hearing and would not comment afterward.

Mallett read statements from letters they wrote to the court, where they urged

Mallett to reject Phangureh’s request for probation.

“I feel if you let the defendant slide with probation it

would be a slap on the wrist,” wrote Anjit Sandhu, Aulkh’s niece. His sister,

Satwinder Sandhu wrote about the effect her brother’s death has on the family.

“By custom and tradition it would be Peter who helps our

parents through the last years of their lives,” she wrote, echoing the family’s

sentiment in the civil suit.

Deputy District Attorney Kevin Ford told Mallett that

Phangureh had previously shown no remorse for his actions, and the nature of

the crash, where Phangureh’s car slammed sideways into two trees at about 66

mph, was particularly violent.

Rien said Phangureh is remorseful and has accepted

responsibility for driving drunk that night, but was advised to discuss the

case with no one.

“The problem that creates, it makes the client seem distant

and aloof and uncaring and unfeeling because they’ve been silenced by their

lawyer,” Rien said.

We want to hear what you have to say. Comment on this story

at www.tracypress.com, or to reach reporter Bob Brownne call 830-4227 or e-mail

brownne@tracypress.com.