CrankyOne

Cy Vance: Repeat Hit-and-Run Killer Shouldn't Drive Again; Judge: Disagree | Streetsblog New York City

And some people think it's safe to ride bicycles on the same roads as Jack.

genec

He has killed twice, at the same damn intersection... should never be allowed to drive again, period.

Should probably be stationed at said intersection to warn other road users to avoid collisions.

lostarchitect 

Wow. That's absolutely sick.

B. Carfree

Can someone please give this judge an object lesson in empathy by running him over? Sure, it won't likely teach him anything, but at least he won't be around to release any more of these menaces.

FBinNY 

It's sad that people with simple moving violations not involving even an injury to anybody can face more severe penalties related to their driver's license. This is just insane. I might understand if this were a 1st offense without alcohol involvement, but a 2nd death, especially compounded by hit and run demands a MUCH more severe penalty --- and that's coming from someone who doesn't usually say "toss the key".

Sometimes I wish there were a system, where somebody (an appellate judge, the prosecutor, or whoever is delegated) can demand that judges explain their thinking when they hand down outlier sentences. I don't believe that the prosecutor can appeal a lenient sentence, but there must be a way to put the judge on the spot.

Meanwhile, on the bright side, I'd be very surprised if ANY company would be brave enough to trust this guy with one of their vehicles.

mconlonx

He should be chained to the nearest lightpost, telephone pole, or street signage with welded chain, left to stave and be ridiculed mercilessly by passersby, his corpse to remain and be picked clean by city vermin as a warning to others. No less.

baron von trail 

In Ohio this probably leads to 30 years in jail.
Jason Skaggs Gets 34 Years | www.whio.com

Dave Cutter

The voters are delegated with that responsibility... and that obligation. However some areas of the nation have become so dedicated to liberal beliefs that party bosses decide for the voters. In these areas such liberal judges continually oppose written laws.

FBinNY 

It's not that simple. Judges hear thousands of cases and hand down thousands of verdicts. Unless they do something truly outrageous that gets tons of press, odds are that only tiny segments of the voting public will have any awareness when the terms come up. This is why there should be a more active judicial review process to add at least the least vestige of accountability.

BTW- there's no mention of whether this sentence was within guidelines or not, albeit low. It's entirely possible that it was, which means the issue needs correction at the legislative level.

Earl Grey

NYC criminal court judges aren't elected at all, are they?

FBinNY 

The NYC criminal court is just that a CITY criminal court. Unless there's an exception for the 5 counties that make up the city, I believe that's separate from the state court system. City criminal courts deal with minor crimes and infractions, as opposed the the state courts which handle the more serious misdemeanors and felonies like the case at hand. State court judges are elected, while the mayor appoints city court judges.

Dave Cutter

Sorry. I call bull on that. NOT that you're incorrect. But because the majority of voters are "party" voters. The party leaders pick the candidates and the sheepeople rubber stamp the decision. It is the voters that are failing in their jobs. The judge did what he was "selected" to do.

mconlonx

What was asked for:
vs. what was handed down:
There are those around here who would claim the original sentence recommended by the prosecutor was too lenient. Considering what the prosecutor pushed for, I don't see the actual sentence as being too far off the mark.

And as a reply to the OP, yes I think it's relatively safe to ride the roads, even with people like this driving motor vehicles. He's not the only one who drive as dangerously, but thankfully, people like this are few and far between. Besides, he seems to be more of a threat to pedestrians than cyclists.

FBinNY 

I also believe the ask was low for a 2nd offense of this type, but have no idea what the max he could have asked for was. OTOH- while judges often or even usually don't give the ask, it's not all that rare. Also the sentence had to be close to the minimum which is extremely out of line for a 2nd fatal hit and run. It was low for a first offense, but was outrageously low for a 2nd.

BTW- the judge gets a pre-sentencing report which paint a more complete picture, given the 3rd DWI incident (over double the limit) and other factors, I can't follow his logic in not going much closer to the max.

mconlonx

From a previous story regarding the conviction which lead to this sentence:

Prosecutor asked for near max; judge gave significantly more than bare minimum. The flavor text above and below are interesting...

In spite of a previous DUI conviction, in spite of the provocative photo showing this dude with a beer in hand, there was no DUI charge in this fatality, nor apparently in the previous one. If he'd stuck around (and was sober at the time) what are the chances he'd even be facing a felony in the first place, or the actual sentence he received?

dynodonn 

In reading the article in the OP, it goes to show that autocentricity is strong in US culture, this being another clear sample of it.

FBinNY 

Thanks for the link. I was aware that there was no DWI in this case, so it was simply about a hit and run with a fatality. Under the circumstances I would have considered the sentence reasonable for a 1st offense (unlike many here on BF). But this was a 2nd offense in 5 years, both involving a fatality, which should have changed things considerably. That plus the other information in the pre-sentencing report would have called for something much closer to the max.

In a spectrum running from probation to 7 years, 6 months + probation for 2 is at the low end of the spectrum. A 2nd offense should call for something closer the the upper end, even without the other DWI on the report.

Not all of this is the judges fault. There needs to be changes in the law to remove the motivation for leaving an accident. Someone facing a possible fatal DWI can greatly reduce the potential penalty if he can leave and lay low for a few hours to clear his blood. Writing laws whereby committing a 2nd crime (leaving) can reduce the consequences of the 1st makes no sense at all.

I don't say this often, but in this case the judge was way off base.

BTW - the photo is irrelevant, he could have been drinking in his backyard, so who cares.

CliffordK

True,
This is probably a photo of the actual person, but so many photos with stores are "stock photos".

What is relevant is that he has had previous accidents related to DUIs.

If all his accidents are hit and run.. one must question whether he is actually drunk at the wheel. How soon is he picked up. But, certainly it doesn't sound like a responsible driver.

True.

He does... well, he did drive for a living. So, just revoking the commercial license will be a hardship. However, it certainly is possible for an ordinary person to live with walking, riding bikes, and using public transportation.

Perhaps we need more car-free judges and jurors.

mconlonx

Makes one wonder what was the first sentence for a class D felony, hit and run involving a fatality, conviction, if this sentence was aggravated due to the first conviction... Probation only?

FBinNY 

First time he probably got probation, most likely on a plea bargain. That's not unreasonable for a 1st offense without aggravating factors. But this is a very obviously a slow learner who lacks respect for life and the law, and the judge should have sentenced accordingly the 2nd time around.

rumrunn6

so wrong

Matariki

Are you kidding me? This makes me sick.

FBinNY 

Me too.

IMO one of the problems with the justice system in the USA is that judges have few options for sentencing other than jail time. Many don't want to sentence employed, otherwise OK members of society with families, to long jail terms. I generally agree since jail in these cases is a lose/lose proposition, and wish there were more options between probation, and time in jail. Maybe we should have the options to sentence people to multiple weekends in jail or a work farm vs. straight time. That would allow a judge to impose a relatively harsh sentence, say 150 weekends over 4 years, without the side effects of straight time.

I'm not sure what the answer is, but agree with you that 6 months for a second fatal hit and run is ridiculous.

LGHT

Was the judges name Vinny and the perf a cousin? I'm sure he said Fugetaboutit sometime later after the favor was given. What is really odd is why on heck does this guy still have a commercial license with all those infractions??

kickstart

Not really, if that was true auto theft would be a serious crime, rather than the minor slap on the wrist that it is.
Its a reflection of much deeper issues within our society to not hold people accountable for their actions because of an ever growing list of sob stories, and supposed victimization.