Man with long rap sheet on way to prison

The luck ran out for a Spring Hill man who has dodged prison in spite of a lengthy rap sheet involving numerous felony charges and one dead victim.

Brian Gomes, 30, was sentenced earlier this month on charges of trafficking oxycodone and selling a controlled substance within 1,000 feet of a school. He pleaded guilty and will spend eight years in prison.

"Mr. Gomes was no stranger to the system and that was one of the reasons the case was assigned to (me)," said Assistant State Attorney Rob Lewis, who handles prosecutions for the career criminal unit in Hernando County. "I wanted to make sure justice was served with this defendant."

Gomes initially was offered a deal for seven years. While being represented by a previous attorney, he turned down the offer, Lewis said.

Since then, he had a change of heart. But all Lewis was willing to offer the second time was an eight-year deal. The seven-year proposal wasn't going to be put back on the table, he said.

Gomes sold drugs out of his home at 3305 Montano Ave., which is in proximity to Springstead High School, according to court records.

Gomes faced up to 30 years in prison had a jury convicted him.

Lewis said he was prepared to take the case to trial, but it would have required him to subpoena a confidential informant who was directly involved in the arrest. He or she now lives out of state.

As far as confidential informants go, this one was credible, but it is difficult to predict how one will do in a trial setting, he said.

"With these cases you just don't know," said Lewis.

A jury didn't convict Gomes four years ago on a DUI manslaughter charge connected to a December 2005 fatal accident along Pickford Street in Spring Hill.

Gomes' passenger, Marc Collins, was killed after the defendant's SUV crashed and flipped over while driving ahead of a pursuing deputy, according to court records.

Jurors agreed to convict Gomes of DUI and driving with a suspended or revoked license. He was sentenced to less than a year in jail.

"They couldn't determine who was behind the wheel when (Collins) died, but he was convicted of DUI and driving on a suspended (license) because a witness testified he had been driving earlier that evening," said Collins' former attorney, Peyton Hyslop.

Jurors probably were suspicious Gomes was behind the wheel when Collins was killed, but "beyond a reasonable doubt" was a high standard the state couldn't meet, Hyslop said.