Deputy who struck, killed bicyclist sentenced to community service

RENO -- A Washoe County sheriff's deputy who struck and killed a bicyclist while on duty last summer has been sentenced to perform 200 hours of community service under an agreement reached with the victim's mother.

The sentence imposed Friday calls for Matthew Durham to speak at schools about inattentive driving and to victim impact panels about the dangers of drunken driving, the Reno Gazette-Journal reported.

Durham could have served jail time for the one misdemeanor count of vehicular manslaughter stemming from the July death of 21-year-old bicyclist Kevin Albertson on Lemmon Drive north of Reno.

But the victim's mother, Angela Albertson, told Justice of the Peace Patricia Lynch she forgave Durham and wanted good to come from her son's death.

"Jail time won't do anybody any good," Albertson said. "Nothing's going to bring my son back, so we have to make the best out of it."

After the hearing, she went up to Durham, and they embraced and cried.

Durham told Angela Albertson he was "truly sorry" and regrets "what has happened to your son."

"I cannot go back and change the events that led to this moment. I can only try to atone for what has transpired as a result of a terrible accident, one that has affected so many lives."

Investigators say the five-year veteran was driving to a call without lights or siren on when he struck the bicyclist.

Durham will continue to work in a non-patrol division while the case goes through an administrative investigation. In addition to community service, his license will be suspended for one year, and he paid $500 in restitution to cover Kevin Albertson's funeral expenses.