Man charged in death of Palmetto High School football player pleads no contest to manslaughter charge

MANATEE -- The suspect charged with vehicular homicide in the Christmas Day death of an 18-year-old Palmetto High School student and football player pleaded no contest Monday.

Roberto Betancourt, 21, entered his plea Monday morning before Circuit Judge Diana Moreland. According to court documents, he pled no contest to manslaughter with a weapon, leaving the scene of a crash with death and driving while license cancelled, suspended, or revoked and causing death or serious bodily injury.

Betancourt's sentencing hearing is set for 8:30 a.m. Feb. 12.

On Dec. 25, Kyle O'Halloran was outside his home in the 1900 block of 24th Avenue West in Palmetto when Betancourt drove up in a Lincoln Town Car, according to Palmetto police

O'Halloran approached the vehicle, had some sort of altercation with the passengers and grabbed onto the vehicle as it tried to leave his driveway, police said.

According to the police report, Betancourt and two others had arrived at O'Halloran's residence to buy marijuana. O'Halloran had presented a small amount to Betancourt and the other vehicle occupants who then passed it around to smell it. Without paying, Betancourt began to pull out of the driveway, police said.

Betancourt deliberately accelerated away from the scene with O'Halloran hanging on, according to police. Witnesses say the victim was hanging out of the window until he fell out and died in the 1800 block of 24th Street West.

Betancourt was arrested and charged with vehicular homicide, leaving the scene of a crash involving a death, reckless driving and driving with no valid driver's license.

O'Halloran's mother, Leann O'Halloran, said she felt mixed emotions after Betancourt pled no contest.

"I'm happy that he's going to prison, but this didn't have to happen," she said. "My son didn't have to die and this young man didn't have to go to prison."

O'Halloran said a part of her felt a little bit of closure, but that she hopes the others in the car that Thursday "have to face up to what they did too." Betancourt didn't do this alone, she added.

"He said the word guilty, so I think he must have some remorse," O'Halloran said. "I almost fell on the floor when I heard that."

At a vigil held just days after her son's death, Leann O'Halloran told the Bradenton Herald that the drug-deal-gone-wrong narrative was false, and the occupants of the vehicle had driven up to her house with the intention of robbing them.

"They want to talk about all the stuff he did, and say it was a drug deal gone bad," she said at the time. "That wasn't my son. That wasn't my son. He was playing football when they pulled up. He didn't have marijuana on him."

No drug charges were filed in the case against Betancourt, O'Halloran added.

A message to Betancourt's attorney, Martin Andrew Burzynski, was not returned Monday.

Assistant State Attorney Candice A. Bartholomew, the prosecuting attorney in the case, declined to comment on what happened in court Monday.

"It's still an open case," she said. "I really can't comment further."

According to Bartholomew, Judge Moreland explained in court Monday that Betancourt can face between 160.5 months, or a little over 13 years, to 65 years in prison.

In a letter about Kyle O'Halloran, Palmetto High's head football/weightlifting coach David Marino said the player's most outstanding assets were his maturity, work ethic and leadership.

"Throughout my many years of teaching I have had the opportunity to work with many young people and I can assure you that Kyle O'Halloran ranked up there with the student who possessed the best chance for continued success throughout his life," Marino wrote. "Unfortunately, this tragic event was a loss not just for his family and friends but for all of society and the great things that were in store for him."

Amaris Castillo, law enforcement/island reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7051. Follow her on Twitter@AmarisCastillo.

Kate Irby, online/political reporter, contributed to this report.

This story was originally published November 9, 2015 at 4:54 PM with the headline "Man charged in death of Palmetto High School football player pleads no contest to manslaughter charge ."