MIAMI – A Miami-Dade Circuit Court judge on Thursday sentenced the driver who pleaded guilty to killing a bicyclist on the Rickenbacker Causeway in January 2010.

Judge Bronwyn Miller sentenced Carlos Bertonatti to 12 years in prison.

"The significance of the events of January 17, 2010, cannot be overstated," said Miller. "The decisions made by Carlos Bertonatti on that date cruelly and irreparably destroyed life as it was known to the entire LeCanne family. By all accounts, Mr. Bertonatti's actions extinguished the life of a loving husband, father, and an outstanding human being."

"The LeCanne family is going to be pleased that at last they can put their son to rest and they can move on," said prosecutor Warren Eth.

Bertonatti's attorney, Robert Pertierre, said they'd appeal the ruling.

"She (Miller) had absolute grounds to deviate from the guidelines. We proved it in three days. It was an isolated incident," he said. "It's mind boggling that Carlos Bertonatti gets 12 years while everybody else gets four or five."

Police say Bertonatti, 32, hit Christophe LeCanne on Jan. 17, 2010, when his blood alcohol content was .122, well over Florida's legal limit of 0.08. He pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and resisting arrest without violence in February.