Nathan White, 36, was jailed for a decade on Tuesday for culpable driving which killed 17-year-old Patrick Bell in June 2015.

In sentencing, County Court judge James Montgomery said he took into account that White would lose contact with his two young daughters during his time in jail.

He also noted White suffered post traumatic stress disorder and had been drinking eight to 12 beers a day since the accident.

"You have disturbing recollections of the death of the victim," Judge Montgomery said.

However, he said White made a decision to drive when he had drunk "a substantial amount of alcohol" and had also sped at more than 90 km/h in a 60 km/h zone.

"Although you took evasive action, it was not enough," Judge Montgomery said.

In her victim impact statement, Mr Bell's mother said her son "had so much to live for".

"We have a gaping hole that can't be filled," she said.

White will be eligible for parole in seven years, and has already served 41 days in pre-sentence detention.

He was disqualified from driving for six years.

SEPTEMBER 19, 2017: A jury reached a unanimous decision in less than an hour to convict Nathan White, 36, of culpable driving causing the death of 17-year-old Patrick Bell on Tuesday, September 19. 

Over six days the County Court sitting at Ballarat heard from 14 witnesses including friends of White, experts in motor mechanics and collision recreation, police officers, and doctors.

The court heard White had been travelling at 96 km/h in a 60 km/h zone with a blood alcohol reading between 0.086 and 0.101 when he fatally hit Mr Bell with his car on Chisholm Street in Black Hill in 2015. 

The jury heard on Wednesday Mr Bell’s brother, Zach, had been searching for Patrick in Chisholm Street when he heard a crash and walked towards it.

It wasn’t until Zach was asked the age of the person who had been hit by a triple zero operator that he pulled back the boy’s hood and realised it was his brother.

Related Content:

Zach Bell declined to appear as a witness in the trial following the traumatic events surrounding his brother’s death.

On Monday, September 18, the court was played a triple zero emergency call made by White immediately following the accident. 

In the recording, White can be heard asking the phone operator “what do I do?” and saying “I tried to dodge him”, “he was in the middle of the road” and “I’m so sorry guys.”

Mr Bell’s family at the court were brought to tears hearing the recording and watching White’s recorded police interviews. 

In his direction to the jury, Country Court Judge James Montgomery asked the members to think carefully about what they consider a reasonable person would have done given the circumstances of the case. 

“It is important to remember not everyone drives perfectly all the time, everyone makes mistakes,” he said. 

Immediately following the verdict, defence barrister Anthony Lavery requested six weeks for a thorough psychological assessment of White before sentencing. 

He will next appear before a judge in Melbourne on Monday, October 30. 

White’s verdict is the second time a jury has returned a guilty conviction in as many weeks at Ballarat with Gemma Sargent,19, being found guilty culpable driving on Thursday, September 7 2017