Bicyclist sentenced for fatal S.F. crash

Christopher Bucchere, 37, leaving court with his attorney Ted Cassman, (left) after his sentencing on Thursday August 15, 2013, in San Francisco, Ca. Bucchere pled guilty to vehicular manslaughter, the first of its kind in the nation involving a bicycle. less Christopher Bucchere, 37, leaving court with his attorney Ted Cassman, (left) after his sentencing on Thursday August 15, 2013, in San Francisco, Ca. Bucchere pled guilty to vehicular manslaughter, the first ... more Photo: Michael Macor, San Francisco Chronicle Photo: Michael Macor, San Francisco Chronicle Image 1 of / 4 Caption Close Bicyclist sentenced for fatal S.F. crash 1 / 4 Back to Gallery

A bicyclist who fatally struck a 71-year-old man who was crossing the street in San Francisco's Castro neighborhood was sentenced Thursday to three years of probation and 1,000 hours of community service.

Chris Bucchere, 37, cut a deal with prosecutors last month, pleading guilty to felony vehicular manslaughter and avoiding a jury trial that could have exposed him to prison time if he had been convicted.

The charge was the most serious ever brought in the U.S. against a cyclist in a fatal crash with a pedestrian, said District Attorney George Gascón. He said the victim's family did not want Bucchere to be locked up.

Bucchere hit Sutchi Hui of San Bruno, a longtime travel agent in San Francisco's Chinatown, on March 29, 2012, as Hui was crossing Castro Street at Market Street with his wife. Hui fell, hit his head on the ground and died four days later.

Bucchere was scheduled to go to trial in October when he agreed to the plea bargain. Judge James Collins sentenced him in San Francisco Superior Court.

Gascón said Bucchere's "egregious" conduct before the crash warranted the felony conviction. Bucchere sped through several stop signs before arriving at Castro and Market, and he rode into the intersection after the light turned red, prosecutors said.

After the accident, but before Hui died, Bucchere wrote a post on an online cycling forum saying he was "way too committed to stop" before hitting Hui.

Bucchere dedicated the post to his "late helmet. She died in heroic fashion today as my head slammed into the tarmac."

Terry Hui, the victim's son, told the court that his father and young daughter had been "inseparable" and that the girl had difficulty grasping why her grandfather was no longer around.

"He was the ultimate doting grandfather," Hui said. "She still thinks of him and says to us, 'Grandpa Hui doesn't visit us anymore. I don't know where he is. I miss him.' It kills me every time she talks about him."

Hui also asked that Bucchere's 1,000 hours of community service be spent caring for the elderly, helping the victims of traumatic brain injury and building houses for the less fortunate.

He cried while reading the statement. His mother, Betty Hui, also cried.

Addressing Bucchere, Terry Hui said, "Please don't squander the second chance you have to become a good and compassionate person ... not to be the narcissistic person you were when you wrote the insensitive Web posting about my father."

Bucchere's felony conviction may be changed to a misdemeanor if, after six months, a judge decides Bucchere has been abiding by the terms of his sentence.