Driver Spared Jail in Baby’s Death : Sentencing: Huntington Beach man gets probation after pleading no contest to charges of running a red light, killing an infant and injuring the mother.

WESTMINSTER —  Despite tearful pleas from a woman whose young daughter was killed in a traffic accident, a Municipal judge declined Tuesday to jail the errant driver, saying that the man’s driving record had been spotless and the incident was tragic for both families.

Ronald LeGrande, 56, of Huntington Beach pleaded no contest in Municipal Court here to a misdemeanor charge of manslaughter without recklessness. He declined to give a statement before his sentencing to three years of informal probation.

“As a parent, I feel there’s no greater tragedy than a death of a child; there’s no greater loss,” Judge Brett London said before imposing his sentence. “(But) there was no intention to kill. There was no intent to commit bodily injury.”

Tiffany Kauten, 8 months, was critically injured June 17 when LeGrande ran a red light and smashed into her mother’s pickup as it crossed the intersection of Yorktown Avenue and Brookhurst Street.

Tiffany’s car seat broke loose upon impact and tumbled inside the cab of her mother’s truck, authorities said. The mother, 20-year-old Julie Kauten, was seriously injured.

Tiffany died of massive head injuries about 10 hours later in the arms of her father, Jeffrey Kauten, who cradled her gently while doctors at Children’s Hospital of Orange County removed life-support systems.

On Tuesday, Julie Kauten broke down in tears as she asked that the maximum sentence of one year in Orange County Jail be imposed.

She told the judge that she is permanently disabled and unable to bear more children. She also has a chronic heart condition that was exacerbated in the crash, she said.

“What I know you don’t understand is what I went through,” Kauten said. “I feel the punishment is not fitting the crime. I don’t know why . . . it’s just not right.”

But LeGrande’s attorney, John D. Barnett of Santa Ana, said that his client has been devastated by the baby’s death. He described LeGrande as a “model citizen” who had no prior traffic offenses and was the father of a 12-year-old deaf son.

Barnett told the judge that although his client ran a red light, killing the baby girl, the court was full of traffic offenders who are guilty of far worse infractions.

“Mr. LeGrande’s conduct is no better or no worse, except that there is tragic result,” Barnett said. “This was not a crime of maliciousness or mean-spiritedness.”

In addition to receiving informal probation, LeGrande was ordered to pay restitution to the family in an amount to be determined later. He was also directed to complete 60 days of community service and will likely have his driver’s license suspended, the judge said.

Outside the courtroom, Barnett said that the accident had crushed LeGrande and hurt his window-tinting business.

“This is terrible,” Barnett said. “It’s had a dramatic effect on his physical well-being as well as his emotional well-being. If he had a chance, I’m sure he’d rather it was he who was dead instead of the child.”

Kauten’s attorney, Mark Meyer of Santa Ana, said that he is preparing a civil suit against LeGrande and the manufacturers of both the car and the car seat. He said it appeared that a malfunction in the equipment contributed to the baby’s death.

Julie Kauten and her mother, Gwen Puckett, said that they were disappointed in the outcome. After months of rehabilitation and fighting the court system, Kauten said that she is angry and confused.

Her medical and legal bills have so far totaled more than $60,000, she said. For months, she has been unable to cope with the loss of her daughter, keeping a wallet full of pictures and visiting her daughter’s grave often.

“He (LeGrande) had representation,” she said in an interview from her home before the sentencing. “But what did Tiffany have? Who came to represent her? She’s gone. That’s all there is to it.”