NICOLE VANDERLIN, LEFT, awaits sentencing in Dickinson County District Court on two counts of moving violation causing death from a 2016 double fatal traffic accident in Breitung Township. Also pictured is defense attorney Vincent Petrucelli. (Nikki Younk/Daily News photo)

IRON MOUNTAIN — A Vulcan woman who caused a head-on crash that killed two Quinnesec men last year in Breitung Township was given the opportunity Tuesday to avoid jail time, but her two misdemeanor convictions will remain on her record.

Allowing 23-year-old Nicole Ann-Marie Vanderlin to erase the convictions with a delayed sentence would be a “disservice” to Rodney and Randall Nelson, Judge Christopher Ninomiya said in Dickinson County District Court.

“Miss Vanderlin, I believe you are a good person who made a tragic mistake here,” Ninomiya said. “But what I want you to understand is that anything that you have to go through, anything that you have to deal with going forward, absolutely pales in comparison to what that family is going through right now and for the rest of their lives.”

Ninomiya issued a four-month jail sentence. However, noting Vanderlin’s lack of a criminal record, he will permit her to serve two months of community service instead of the first month in jail, and avoid the remaining three months if she successfully completes two years of probation.

Restitution will remain open.

Vanderlin previously pleaded no contest to two counts of moving violation causing death, a one-year misdemeanor.

Investigators believe Vanderlin was traveling 61 mph in a 50 mph zone when she crossed the double center line on Breitung Cutoff Road near Hydraulic Falls Road on June 6, 2016, and collided head-on with a vehicle occupied by the Nelson brothers, 62-year-old Rodney and 58-year-old Randall.

Something caused Vanderlin to become distracted while driving, Dickinson County Prosecutor Lisa Richards said. But the exact cause was not determined, and Vanderlin has no memory of what happened, defense attorney Vincent Petrucelli said.

Randall Nelson died at the crash site and Rodney Nelson died at Dickinson County Memorial Hospital, with the cause of death listed as blunt force trauma, according to a Michigan State Police report.

The men’s 82-year-old mother attended Tuesday’s sentencing hearing but declined to address the court, saying “I don’t think I could do it without crying.”

Ninomiya instead read aloud a letter submitted by the Nelsons’ sister that offered several suggestions for Vanderlin to honor the victims.

“Remember that you are the one who survived,” the letter stated. “There is a reason for that, there has to be.”

The letter asked that Vanderlin remember the men and the family members who lost them; take her punishment maturely and learn from it; learn about autism and be kind to those who have the condition, as Randall Nelson did; pick up litter as Rodney Nelson used to do; and realize that careless driving can be devastating.

Petrucelli argued for a delayed sentence, pointing out Vanderlin has no criminal record, has led an exemplary life and will carry the memory of the accident for the rest of her life.

Richards asked the judge to consider the similar case of Michael Delacruz, who caused a fatal accident in the same area of Breitung Township just three days before Vanderlin’s crash. Delacruz also was an upstanding member of the community with no previous criminal record and he did not receive a delayed sentence, Richards said.

Vanderlin simply apologized for her actions and noted she expressed her emotions in a letter to the court.

Terms of Vanderlin’s probation include not driving any motor vehicles, completing a driver safety course, writing a 10-page essay on the dangers of distracted driving, and participating in three litter pick-ups.