By the time she finished her tearful, rambling, repetitive apology and plea for whatever mercy she could reasonably expect, the defendant had all but cursed her own name.
Sunshine Perez, 46, pleaded no contest in March to DUI manslaughter, vehicular homicide and reckless driving charges stemming from the January 2025 wrong-way crash on Florida’s Turnpike that caused the death of aspiring firefighter Ezequiel Urrutia.
After an emotional day of testimony from the driver and the family and friends of the young man she killed, Broward Circuit Judge Peter Holden sentenced Perez to a total of 20 years in prison, 10 years probation and permanent revocation of her driver’s license.
There was no plea agreement, and she had faced a maximum of 34 years in prison.
“It hurts my existence to know that my hands, my hands did this,” said Perez, who told the judge that her father caused his own death by riding a motorcycle under the influence of alcohol when she was a child. “I just wish every day I could change places with (Urrutia).”
The victim’s sister and his mother asked Holden to impose the maximum sentence.
“Losing my brother has been the most painful experience of my life,” said his sister, Alexis. “He was the built-in best friend I was supposed to have for life. Because of Sunshine Perez’s reckless decisions, my brother’s life was taken from us in the blink of an eye.”
Urrutia’s mother, Tiffany, said she once imagined at this time she would be planning her son’s wedding. “I was supposed to watch my son build the life he worked so hard to earn,” she said. “Instead, I watched the local news. … There are mornings when the weight of our loss is so crushing that the simplest tasks become impossible.”
Perez’s apology lasted 25 minutes, during which she sobbed and wailed and only occasionally held her composure for more than a few seconds. “I am so very sorry, so very sorry for the outcome of my accident that I caused. I did not do any of this on purpose. … When I wake up every day, I ask God to forgive me. I have so much trouble forgiving myself.”
“Sunshine,” she said, is a word that should bring joy. Instead, she acknowledged, it will forever be tied to the tragic end of Urrutia’s life.
Friends and family members watching the proceedings on Zoom used the chat feature to show they were not swayed by the display of contrition.
“Every day is a struggle for his parents,” said a Zoom user identified as Kristen Jimenez. “Why are we still letting her talk?”
“I feel so sorry for my family having to sit there and listen to her carry on,” said Zoom user Sherry Jabo. Reached by phone Friday afternoon, Jabo declined to comment further.
But others in the courtroom did not hold back, reminding Perez over and over again that she had a choice to drive under the influence of alcohol, and that the taking of Urrutia’s life was a consequence of her actions.
“This is not God’s plan,” Cristina Diaz, who dated Urrutia for four years leading up to his death, said to the judge. “It happened because of a choice.”
Her father, Francesco Diaz, who took the stand after his daughter, praised Urrutia as a young man with a promising future. “I can confidently say that Ezekiel made and left this world a better place,” he said.
Frank Urrutia cries in court during the sentencing hearing of Sunshine Perez, at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed his son Ezequiel Urrutia on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Cristina Joy Diaz is shown in court during the sentencing hearing of Sunshine Perez at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, July 24, 2026. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed Diaz’s longtime boyfriend, Ezequiel Urrutia, on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Frank Urrutia escorts his mother, Martita Urrutia, back to her seat after she gave an impact statement in court during the sentencing hearing of Sunshine Perez at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, July 24, 2026. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed Ezequiel Urrutia, the son of Frank Urrutia and grandson of Martita Urrutia, on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Cristina Joy Diaz stands to give her impact statement in court during the sentencing hearing of Sunshine Perez at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, July 24, 2026. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed Diaz’s longtime boyfriend, Ezequiel Urrutia, on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Prosecutor Ross Weiner sets a photograph of Ezequiel Urrutia on an easel during the sentencing hearing of Sunshine Perez at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, July 24, 2026. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed Urrutia on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Photographs of Ezequiel Urrutia are displayed during the sentencing hearing of Sunshine Perez at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, July 24, 2026. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed Urrutia on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
A woman wears a photograph of Ezequiel Urrutia during the sentencing hearing of Sunshine Perez at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, July 24, 2026. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed Urrutia on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Frank Urrutia brought his son Ezequiel Urrutia’s fire helmet to court for the sentencing hearing of Sunshine Perez at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, July 24, 2026. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed Ezequiel on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Sunshine Perez speaks during her sentencing hearing at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, July 24, 2026. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed Ezequiel Urrutia on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Sunshine Perez is wheeled to the defense table during her sentencing hearing at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, July 24, 2026. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed Ezequiel Urrutia on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Sunshine Perez is wheeled to the defense table during her sentencing hearing at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, July 24, 2026. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed Ezequiel Urrutia on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Sunshine Perez’s husband, Phillip Perez, looks at her as he speaks on her behalf during her sentencing hearing at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, July 24, 2026. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed Ezequiel Urrutia on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
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Frank Urrutia cries in court during the sentencing hearing of Sunshine Perez, at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Friday. Perez, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and related charges in connection with a wrong-way crash that killed his son Ezequiel Urrutia on Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar on Jan. 9, 2025. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Frank Urrutia, the victim’s father, remembered his son as a dedicated athlete, “always baseball ready,” an occasional fisherman, a wrestler and, perhaps above all, an aspiring firefighter. Sports, he said, taught him the value of standing “on your own” and being a part of a team.
“Zeke was like a plane sitting on a runway, preparing to take off for a life of service,” he said. “And then, in a single moment, Sunshine Perez came and ended everything.”
Perez was speeding as fast as 100 mph westbound on the eastbound leg of Florida’s Turnpike in Miramar for three miles leading up to the collision, authorities said.
She was driving a 2010 Honda Element. Urrutia, 23, was in a 2016 Honda Civic.
The two collided head-on near Mile Marker 43. Urrutia died on impact.
Perez’s blood alcohol level was above 0.09 four hours after the crash, according to records. She also had traces of methamphetamine, oxycodone and THC (marijuana) in her bloodstream, said prosecutor Ross Weiner. In court Friday, Perez acknowledged being a marijuana smoker but denied being a drug addict. She said she thought she was taking pain medicine to explain the other drugs in her system.
Rafael Olmeda can be reached at rolmeda@sunsentinel.com or 954-356-4457.