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Repeat drunk driver pleads guilty to killing man

EVERETT, Wash. — A drunk driver who plowed into three men, killing one of them, took responsibility today.

But this isn't the first time he's been guilty of drunk driving.

It’s been more than a year since Jerad Clawson ended up on the side of a Marysville road with broken bones lying next to his dying friend.  On Tuesday, he was just a few feet from Terrance Olesen, the man who left them there.

"If he would have stopped to see if we were OK this whole thing would have been totally different.  It would have been handled a lot better,” said Clawson.

Police said Olesen’s blood alcohol level was three times the legal limit when he drove into Clawson, Alex Ryan and Shane Santos.  Santos died at the scene.  An officer spotted Olesen’s damaged car a few miles away and arrested him.

Clawson, who is still in physical therapy, is disappointed prosecutors are recommending the low end of the sentencing range just 12 years in prison.

Olesen was already convicted of a DUI in 2007 and several other incidents of driving while his license was suspended or revoked.

"It's not fair,” said Clawson.

Prosecutors say the previous DUI conviction automatically adds two years that are included in the  12-year recommendation.

We asked prosecutor Tobin Darrow, "Is he getting a break?"

"He's not getting a break.  He is pleading guilty to the crimes that he committed,” said Darrow.

Clawson says the deal is not good enough for the victims.

"He's still going to be able to go back to a normal person's life.  Shane won't,” said Clawson.

The ultimate decision is up to the judge who will sentence Olesen next month.  The maximum sentence is just over 15 years.