Woman gets prison for deadly DUI crash in southeast Lincoln
LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — A Lincoln woman was sentenced Wednesday for driving while drunk and causing a deadly crash.
Deeanna Deets got 28 to 31 years for motor vehicle homicide with a prior DUI and DUI causing serious bodily injury.
She got credit for more than a year of time served and will be eligible for parole in 13 years.
SEE ALSO: Woman accused of DUI in deadly southeast Lincoln crash
Deets, 41, will have her driver’s license revoked for 15 years after her release from prison. After the first year, she can apply for a license requiring an ignition interlock device.
The four-vehicle crash happened on June 8, 2024, in southeast Lincoln.
Police said Deets was going south on 84th Street near Old Cheney Road and crossed into the northbound lanes.
She hit an SUV head-on, killing the driver, 49-year-old Amare Biftu of Lincoln.
SEE ALSO: Victim of deadly Lincoln crash ID’d; other driver suspected of drug, alcohol use
The force of the crash caused Biftu’s engine to fly off, and it was hit by another vehicle. A fourth vehicle hit Deets’ car.
Court documents say Biftu’s passenger suffered serious injuries, including fractures of his sternum, ribs and collarbone.
Deets also was seriously injured, and her passenger had minor injuries.
SEE ALSO: LPD investigating fatal crash in southeast Lincoln
An arrest affidavit says there were open alcohol containers on the driver’s side of her car.
Her blood alcohol content level was 0.152%, the affidavit says, almost twice the legal limit.
Court records say this was at least Deets’ sixth DUI, and her license was revoked at the time.
She pleaded no contest last month, and three other charges were dismissed.
