Family members and friends of the Penn State professor killed by a van while riding his bike said they are disappointed with the plea bargain being offered to the van's driver.

Thomas B. Fry tentatively accepted a plea agreement Monday in the death of Penn State professor Bohdan Kulakowski, 63, who was killed after being struck by Fry's van while riding his bike along Boalsburg Road March 22, according to court documents.

Centre County District Attorney Michael Madeira said he could not discuss the details of the agreement until Fry enters a plea March 27.

However, Dominik Kulakowski, the victim's son, said he is familiar with the plea offer and said he believes it includes no jail time.

Fry, 51, is charged with homicide by vehicle, involuntary manslaughter, reckless and careless driving and disregarding a traffic lane. During Fry's preliminary hearing in June, two State College doctors testified that Fry was diagnosed with a degenerative eye disease in the 1980s and should not have been driving. Fry has said nobody ever informed him that he wasn't supposed to drive.

Dominik Kulakowski said he was disappointed that Fry might not face jail time.

"I think we're all still sort of in shock at the leniency of the plea bargain and how it doesn't really match the crime that we're talking about," he said. "It was inconceivable to me that the outcome of this could not involve substantial jail time."

Madeira said the standard sentencing range for homicide by vehicle and involuntary manslaughter is three to 12 months in jail if convicted.

Ron McGlaughlin, Fry's attorney, said the family is entitled to react however they want, but Fry's proposed punishment is within Pennsylvania guidelines. "It''s not as if he's been let go scot-free," he said. "What they want to see done, no judge in the land has the power to do."

McGlaughlin said Fry had definitely shown remorse for the incident.

"I know him personally. I've known him before this incident. It's without question," he said. "The people who know him would tell you the same thing."

John Mason, associate dean of graduate studies, research and outreach in the College of Engineering, said he had worked with Bohdan Kulakowski for 18 years.

Mason, who was preparing a letter documenting Kulakowski's contributions to graduate studies at Penn State when the plea offer was announced, said he was also disappointed with the plea offer.

Madeira said there was a "difference between an understandable emotional reaction and what the law calls for."

"I knew that they really wanted more than the law allowed, and I fully understand that," he said. "It is hard to imagine losing a family member."

Madeira said he had to make a decision on the plea agreement in a "detached way." Dominik Kulakowski said his family did not have immediate plans to speak with Madeira about the plea offer, but Madeira said he would be willing to discuss it further with them if asked.