Lane Garrison didn't catch a break on prison time.
The actor was sentenced Wednesday to a total of 40 months in state prison stemming from the booze-fueled crash that killed a high school student last December.
He could have faced a maximum penalty of six years and eight months behind bars.
Speaking to the court before his sentencing, Garrison, dressed in a suit and free from handcuffs, expressed remorse for his actions and vowed to make amends.
"I just want to say how sorry I am to the Setian family. I am sickened by my behavior on that night. My thoughts keep coming back to that night," he said.
"I want to show that my walk with sobriety will be very easy. I want to help other kids not make the same mistake I did."
The former Prison Break player will receive credit for the 91 days he has already served, which combined with California's early release program for good behavior, will likely reduce his sentence to about 20 months.
Garrison pleaded guilty in May to felony vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence in the deadly accident that took 17-year-old Vahagn Setian's life and injured two 15-year-old girls.
Following his plea, Garrison was ordered in August to undergo a 90-day diagnostic stay at the California Institute for Men in Chino.
He completed the psychological evaluation last month and was turned over to Los Angeles County authorities. Since then, he has been incarcerated at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility while awaiting sentencing.
The actor's legal team had pushed for him to be released on probation, but Superior Court Judge Elden S. Fox felt a stricter penalty was in order.
"I think you are ultimately a decent human being who made a very bad mistake...[and] that crime resulted in the devastation to at least three different families," Fox told Garrison.
He said he was not treating the actor differently than any other defendant.
"I think the public has a right to know that conduct such as this causing devastation such as this needs to be punished," he said.
Fox said he was aware of a petition bearing over 3,600 signatures collected by a community coalition urging him to throw the book at Garrison, but said he had not accepted delivery of it.
In addition to the prison sentence, Garrison was ordered to pay close to $300,000 in restitution to the Setian family and to the two girls injured in the crash.
His lawyer, Harland Braun, called the sentence "perfectly appropriate," saying that Garrison accepted his punishment and had no plans to appeal.