Warm Springs man gets 4 1/2 years in crash that killed grandson

A Jefferson County judge sentenced a Warm Springs man to 4 ½ years in prison Thursday, nearly four years after his SUV, which he admitted had bad brakes, ran a stop sign and collided with a car at an intersection north of Madras. The collision caused the SUV to flip, killing his 5-year-old grandson and seriously injuring two people in the car.

Leroy Alvin Hicks Jr., 55, agreed to a plea deal to avoid a scheduled Feb. 12 trial on charges of first- and second-degree manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, four counts of second- and third-degree assault and reckless driving in the Feb. 17, 2014 crash that killed his 5-year-old grandson, Royce Hicks Greene and severely injured Colton Hemenway, 23, of Bend, and Kiana Wahenka, 21, of Madras, Jefferson County District Attorney Steven Leriche said in a news release.

Instead, Hicks entered no-contest pleas Thursday to the criminally negligent homicide charge and two counts of third-degree assault.

Leriche said Hicks had admitted to sheriff’s Detective Bryan Skidgel in an recorded interview that his 1984 Chevy Suburban had become increasingly difficult to stop as he drove it throughout that day.

But Hicks continued to drive until the brakes failed, causing him to run a stop sign at Gumwood Lane and enter onto Boise Drive, into the path of a 2001 Ford Mustang driven by Hemenway. The collision caused Hicks’ Suburban to flip, partially ejecting his grandson through the front passenger window, authorities said.

Despite significant lifesaving efforts by bystanders and responding medics, the child died at the scene. The DA said it did not appear to investigators that the boy was properly secured in the SUV, since he was partially ejected and had no bruises, scrapes or marks consistent with seat belt use on his body.

A child’s booster seat was found in the field of debris with items from the back of the SUV, Leriche said, and a forensic examination of the booster seat and seat belt showed no evidence to indicate they were in use during the crash. The DA also said investigators determined Hemenway was not speeding.

Under the negotiated plea deal, the state requested an 18-month sentence for each of the three victims to run consecutively for a total of 54 months, in exchange for dismissing the more serious charges. Defense lawyers asked the court to instead sentence Hicks to three concurrent sentences, for a total of 18 months in prison.

Jefferson County Chief Deputy District Attorney Brentley Foster described for Circuit Judge Annette Hillman the significant injuries and hospitalizations suffered by Hemenway and Wahenka. In a sentencing memorandum, he also noted Hicks’ prior history of running stop signs and failing to use his seat belt.

Foster also provided numerous Facebook posts by Hicks and a family member, disparaging the two surviving crash victims and blaming Hemenway for the crash despite evidence from his own defense expert confirming that the SUV’s brake failure caused the crash and that Hemenway was not speeding.

The sentencing memo detailed the posts, saying Hicks called Hemenway a “piece of s–t” and “baby killer,” among other things, and accused him of murder and lying to grand jury.

But the prosecutor said the crash was solely caused by Hicks’ decision to keep driving, despite his awareness that the Suburban was getting harder and harder to stop over the previous two to three weeks. Foster also said Hicks’ behavior demonstrated a lack of empathy and remorse toward his victims, who were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“This was not an accident,” the prosecutor said in the sentencing memo. “An accident is a sudden, unavoidable incident that occurs with no warning. This was an entirely avoidable crash. This was a sober, selfish, conscious choice to continue driving, even though (Hicks) knew it was getting harder and harder to stop the vehicle.” Foster also noted Hicks had experience as a professional truck driver.

Hemenway also spoke in court, saying that while Hicks’ inability to accept that he caused his grandson’s death was understandable, the continued victimization of the car’s two occupants by Hicks was unfair.

Hicks’ lawyer, John Gutbezahl of Lake Oswego, asked for a total 18-month sentence, highlighting Hicks’ service as a Marine, as well as being a family man and the father of six children. He asked Hillman to take into consideration Hicks’ grief at the loss of his grandson and ongoing health issues that have significantly impaired his quality of life (he was in a wheelchair in court). The defense lawyer also said the Facebook posts referred to by prosecutors were “not the Mr. Hicks I know.”

As she imposed the maximum 54-month sentence under the plea agreement, Hillman told Hicks it was time for him to stop blaming Hemenway for the crash.

Hicks will receive credit for time served – roughly three weeks – and be eligible for all good time, programs and transitional leave offered by the Oregon Department of Corrections, Leriche said. After his release from prison, Hicks faces three years of post-prison supervision, and his driver’s license is permanently revoked.

Leriche thanked the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office “for their unwavering commitment to seeking justice in this case.”