Three days after drunkenly killing a biker on the Rickenbacker Causeway and speeding away to his high-end Key Biscayne condo, would-be pop star Carlos Bertonatti is a free man this morning.
Bertonatti posted a $100,000 bond late in the afternoon yesterday, Det. Rebecca Perez, a Miami-Dade Police Department spokeswoman, tells Riptide.
At first, immigration authorities had placed a hold on the 28-year-old, who was born in Venezuela but was living legally in the United States as a resident. But that hold was released before Bertonatti posted bond and headed home, his attorney tells the Herald this morning.
''My client is extremely sorry for the events that took place Sunday,'' Susy Ribero-Ayala says to the Herald. ''He is distraught and he recognizes the severity of it. He will live with this for the rest of his life, and he is ready to deal with the justice system and accept whatever consequences may be coming.''
Bertonatti faces counts of DUI manslaughter, vehicular homicide, resisting arrest, driving without a license and leaving the scene of a fatal accident after killing Christophe Le Canne, a 44-year-old cyclist, a little after 8 a.m. on Sunday.
Miami's cyclists, meanwhile, are continuing their push today for more answers about why medical help took more than 20 minutes to arrive to help the fallen biker.
A mass rally is planned at this afternoon's County Commission meeting, where commissioners are scheduled at 3 p.m. to hear an item about budget cuts at Key Biscayne's fire house.
No one from that fire house responded to Le Canne on Sunday, despite being far closer to the scene than the Miami ambulances that arrived, in part because the station was on part-time hours due to a slashed budget.
County Mayor Carlos Alvarez released a statement promising to look into the delays.
"If it is found that standard operating procedures were violated with regard to emergency response, those involved will be held accountable. No one wants to see this happen again," he says.
Cyclists are also planning a memorial ride for Le Canne on Sunday. The ride, which starts at 9 a.m. outside the Mast Academy, will circle past the spot where Le Canne died on Bear Cut Bridge.
