PONTIAC (WWJ) - The man who ran over and killed Oakland County Sheriff's Deputy Eric Overall has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Christopher Berak, who was convicted of first-degree murder and murder of a peace officer in November, received the expected mandatory sentence before Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Leo Bowman on Tuesday.
Offered a chance to speak, Berak apologized to Overall's family, saying he's sorry for what he did and that he hopes they're all "doing OK."
Authorities said Berak, 24, was trying to get away from police the morning of Nov. 23, 2017 — Thanksgiving Day — when he veered off M-15 in Brandon Township, near Seymour Lake Rd., during a 22-mile pursuit.
Overall was outside his squad car and preparing to deploy stop sticks designed to deflate a vehicle's tires, police said, when he was hit by Berak’s vehicle, which then rolled over.
Witnesses testified, and dash cam video showed, that Berak swerved, making a nearly 90-degree turn before hitting over Overall, who was well off the roadway in a grassy area when the collision occurred.
Berak's defense attorney Steve Rabaut argued without success that it was an accident, contending his client did not intend to hit the deputy but was reacting to the stop sticks.
Overall's widow, Sonya Overall, spoke to reporters about her husband after the sentencing.
"He wasn't defined by being a police officers," she told WWJ's Jon Hewett and other reporters. "He was defined by the type of man that he was...full of integrity, full of love and always wanting to give that out into the community."
Sonya Overall said she's just glad this is all finally over.
"I've been in and out of this courtroom for two years," she said. "And even though, yes, I knew what the sentence was going to be...just having that finality, that little bit of closure to the legal process is definitely a weight off my shoulders."