The former city police officer who wrecked his car and killed his best friend in 2004 was found guilty today of homicide by vehicle.

But Sean Deasy, 34, of Banksville, will avoid a mandatory three-year prison sentence because Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey A. Manning ruled that speed, not alcohol, was the cause of the accident.

Following a non-jury trial spaced out over several months, Judge Manning found Mr. Deasy not guilty of homicide by vehicle while under the influence.

Mr. Deasy also was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Joseph Walker, 27, of Green Tree, and driving under the influence. Sentencing was set for March 2.

The two men had been drinking and playing board games with their wives in the early hours of April 21, 2004, before going on a beer run. Driving his new Ford Mustang, Mr. Deasy was traveling 72 mph on West Liberty Avenue, according to police, when he spun out and crashed into a utility pole.

Mr. Walker, co-owner of Casey's Draft House on the South Side, was pronounced dead at the scene. The speed limit in that area was 35.

Mr. Deasy's blood alcohol level was measured at from 0.11 to 0.13 after the crash, above the 0.08 legal limit. But Judge Manning ruled that prosecutors did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the alcohol caused the wreck.

"We're very fortunate," said Mr. Deasy's defense attorney, William H. Difenderfer. "But he still has a serious sentencing coming up in March."