As Deadspin reports: “Matt Bush Chose An Extra Year In Prison Because He Can’t Trust Himself To Stay Clean.” The alternative to that extra year of incarceration was 7 years of probation. That’s a long time. Seeing so many reoffenders in the system (and Mr. Bush has a prior record due to his substance abuse issues,) most defendants are better off taking jail in lieu of probation, especially such a long period. On probation, even a little slip up could send him back to prison for much more than that year.
I spoke to the prosecutor on the case, who said that Bush was lucky the motorcyclist he hit survived, as he would’ve gotten more time. What made the case worse, was that Bush fled the scene. Florida treats leaving the scene with injuries more seriously than the DUI itself. He made the situation much worse by trying to flee. Mr. Bush was not able to post bond, his baseball money is long gone, and has been in custody since the arrest, so he does have some credit toward his sentence already.
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