Florida public defender who's married to tycoon escapes with light sentence for crushing student to death

A glamorous public defender was sentenced to probation after being convicted of crushing a 22-year-old University of Miami student with her truck in Florida. 

Veronica Bilbao de la Vega, 38, of Miami, evaded jail time on Thursday for the death of Danny Bishop, 22. 

Bilbao de la Vega stuck and killed Bishop in Coral Gable on March 5, 2024, while he was riding his scooter on the sidewalk to school. She had been attempting to make a turn. 

She hit him going 17 mph while driving on an expired license. She had a green light and the walk sign was on, according to NBC Miami. 

Bilbao de la Vega pleaded no contest and appeared emotional in court when an officer testified that both wheels of her vehicle ran over Bishop. 

'And this woman didn’t even have a valid driver's license, and she’s gonna get community service,' Bishop's mother, Susan, said after the court proceedings. 

'How can a lawyer, a mother, a community member drive knowingly with an expired license, not be careful when watching the road in front of her, and killing an innocent pedestrian on a crosswalk?'  

The public defender was sentenced to probation, evading the maximum sentence of 60 days in jail. She will serve six months on probation and will do 500 hours of community service tutoring underprivileged children, according to the outlet. 

She will also have to complete a driving course and pay court costs for the traffic infraction. 

Her husband, Daniel de la Vega, the CEO of a prominent real estate company, begged the court to consider his wife's character before sentencing her. 

'I want the court to know this accident has deeply affected Veronica. The moment I arrived at the scene, Veronica was inconsolable, she was shaking uncontrollably,' Daniel said. 

'From that day forward your honor, she has not been the same person. She prays with rosary every night seeking solace for not only herself but her family.' 

Susan Bishop does not believe justice has been served, saying: 'There’s no way to enact any real justice, and the punishment will never fit the crime.' 

'It’s terrible to live like this, on and on,' Bishop's father, Jason, said, according to WSVN. 

The victim's family plans on filing a civil lawsuit against Bilbao de la Vega soon, according to their Attorney Robert Boyers. 

'Criminal law has limitations in terms of holding negligent parties accountable, even when that negligence resulted in catastrophic loss. The prosecutors’ hands were tied, but ours are not, and we intend to hold the defendant fully accountable in the civil justice system,' he said.