Tammy Sytch: WWE Hall of Famer receives prison sentence in deadly Florida DUI crash

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. - WWE Hall of Famer Tammy "Sunny" Sytch – whose real name is Tamara Sytch -- was sentenced Monday to more than a decade in prison connected to a 2022 DUI deadly crash that killed a 75-year-old man in Daytona Beach.

The judge sentenced Sytch to 17 years in the Florida Department of Corrections – a 10-year sentence and a 7-year sentence to be served consecutively, or one after the other. Sytch pleaded no contest to several charges, including driving with a suspended license, DUI, and DUI with damage to person and DUI with damage to property. She received credit of over 500 days for time served.

At the completion of her sentence, she'll have to complete 8 years of probation, 50 hours of community service, and pay a $10,000 fine. Her license will also be permanently revoked, the judge said.

The sentencing was delivered shortly after 3 p.m. Sytch did not have any visible reaction to the sentencing. She appeared to speak briefly with her legal representatives before being led out of the courtroom.

Tammy Sytch speaks during sentencing: ‘It haunts me daily'

An emotional Sytch told the judge during a roughly 5-minute statement that she once wanted to be a doctor and referenced the "do no harm" of the Hippocratic Oath. 

"On March 25, 2022, I did the opposite of that and did harm to someone else," she said. She said she made a "stupid decision" and feels deep regret and remorse inside her soul for the death of 75-year-old Julian Lassiter, who died at the hospital after, police say, he was struck by Sytch's vehicle.

"I know my words are not enough. But please know I think about you every day," she said, looking back momentarily toward the courtroom gallery. "Every second of every day, and I will do whatever I can to make the changes I need to make sure this never happens again. No one should have to go through this and please know that every single second of every day since the crash, I wish I could change places with him."

Police said Sytch's blood alcohol level was more than three times the legal limit at the time of the crash. She was behind the wheel of a Mercedes, which crashed into Lassiter's vehicle, and a third vehicle, according to the arrest report.

She and Lassiter were both unresponsive after the crash and taken to the hospital. Lassiter died hours later, the report said.

Police said a bottle of vodka was found in Sytch's vehicle. She was arrested a week later while staying at the Hard Rock Hotel in Daytona Beach, Florida, Police noted at the time that Sytch's vehicle was suspended for a possible DUI conviction out of Pennsylvania.

In 2022, a judge revoked her bond after prosecutors filed a motion citing previous DUI convictions from states outside of Florida and said she's a threat to the community.

In its court motion, the state alleged Sytch had previously been convicted of a crime, including two DUI charges in 2015 in Pennsylvania, and years later violated probation. The state also alleged that Sytch's license was suspended.

Sytch has been held in the Volusia County jail without bond ever since.

Lassiter's family sued Sytch for at least $30,000 to cover medical and funeral expenses, as well as an emotional loss.