BOSTON (WBZ-AM) -- The man who drove into Sweet Tomatoes restaurant in March 2016, leaving two people dead, rejected a plea deal Monday--and both sides are now preparing for a trial.
It seemed for some time that the families of the victims, Eleanor Miele and Gregory Morin, would be spared the ordeal of watching the terrible night of the crash replayed in court.
Miele's sister, Mary Cicciu, told WBZ NewsRadio 1030 that she wants an apology from the driver, Brad Casler.
She said she wants Casler to "be really sincerely sorry that he used very poor judgement that day, and because of that, he took two beautiful lives from this earth."
For Casler's attorneys, there could be no plea deal that included incarceration for their client--so, after the judge announced he would recommend two years behind bars for Casler, the deal was dropped.
"I probably wouldn't want to go to jail, either, but, you know, you gotta take responsibility in your life," said Cicciu.
The two sides continue to talk about the possibility of settling without a trial, but for now, what was to be a plea hearing this Friday is now a hearing to set the trial's schedule.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Kendall Buhl reports