After reporting they were deadlocked Friday, jurors returned to a Fort Lauderdale courtroom and said they had acquitted Leyritz of DUI manslaughter, for which he had been facing up to 15 years in prison, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported.

Instead, Leyritz was convicted of a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence, which can carry a sentence of up to six months in jail.

Thirty-year-old Fredia Ann Veitch, of Plantation, died Dec. 28, 2007, when her car collided with a vehicle driven by Leyritz after he had celebrating his birthday at Fort Lauderdale nightspots.

Prosecutors were unable to prove Leyritz ran a red light in the accident, and his defense lawyer argued the former Yankee's blood alcohol level may have been below Florida's legal limit of 0.08 percent at the time of crash, despite a higher reading later, the newspaper said.

Defense attorney David Bogenschutz said a brain injury Leyritz sustained in the crash caused his digestive system to slow down, making a subsequent blood test untrustworthy.

Copyright 2010 United Press International, Inc. (UPI).