"What is the value of a life?" anguished relatives of man killed by a drunk driver in 2007 repeatedly asked in court this morning.

Circuit Judge Richard Perkins answered the question by sentencing Sarah Whitford, 27, to 18 months in prison, five years probation and payment of $7,777.48 in restitution to the widow of victim Valaile Fuaiva Jr.

Deputy Prosecutor Kristine Yoo had asked for the maximum sentence — 10 years in prison — telling Perkins that Whitford's blood alcohol level was almost triple the legal limit and she was driving between 56 and 77 miles per hour in a 25-mph zone.

Whitford smashed into a motorcycle driven by Fuaiva in Haleiwa, killing the decorated Vietnam veteran who was the father of four children and a pastor in the Haleiwa Evangelical Mission.

Defense attorney Michael Green asked Perkins for probation for his pregnant client, noting that she has been "clean and sober" for more than a year and is deeply remorseful for the crime.

Perkins noted that Whitford was convicted of a 2005 drunk driving charge in California in 2005 but said a pre-sentence study indicated she would respond well to a sentence that requires rehabilitation and restitution.

Whitford said, "I am truly sorry for my accident" and said she "wanted so much to trade my life" for Fuaiva's.

"I want to do everything in my power to make things better," she said.