Jury gives Garner three life sentences

{Garner Cries as Verdict is Read – Photo by Sholto Gunn}

The mother of one deceased victim and the father of another hugged in the back of the courtroom last Wednesday afternoon and appeared relieved after a jury hammered the drunk driver responsible for their children’s death with the maximum sentence allowed by law.

The seven-man, five-woman jury, needed only 34 minutes to convict Raymond Garner on two counts of murder, one count of first-degree fetal homicide and on four counts of first-degree assault in connection with a 2007 crash that decapitated eight-year-old Gus Pontikis, and killed 25-year-old Cindy Haas and her unborn child. Prior to trial, Garner pled guilty to driving while under the influence of alcohol and Valium, and for driving on a license that was suspended a few months earlier for another DUI charge. Jurors needed an additional one hour and 10 minutes before they recommended three sentences of life in prison to cover the murder and fetal homicide charges, and a total of 80 years in prison on the assault charges. They recommended that the sentences be served consecutively, or one after the other, which was the most severe punishment they could levy. “I think the facts of this case were so extreme and so horrible that I expected the jury would give him a very severe punishment, which they did,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney Allen Trimble. “It was one of these cases with such horrible tragic results that I don’t think the jury was left with a whole lot options other than what they did.” The July 9, 2007, wreck on I-75 is still described by many of the first responders present that night as the worst accident scene that they have ever encountered. Truck was floored Garner’s pick-up truck barreled up the interstate weaving between traffic as Garner drove the vehicle as fast as it would go, witnesses testified. A Lexington police officer, who examined a black box recording device in Garner’s vehicle, testified that Garner was going 93 mph when he hit a guardrail on the right side of the road. Several witnesses testified that the vehicle then shot across the median of I-75, and went airborne before striking a vehicle driven by Peter Pontikis, Gus’ father, and another driven by Haas, who was seven months pregnant. Officer Ricky Kendrick testified that five seconds prior to the wreck until the actual collision, Garner had the accelerator pressed all the way down. “It’s as fast as it will go. It’s wide open,” Kendrick testified. “He didn’t hit the brakes no where in here at any time.” Garner’s truck tore through the Pontikis vehicle killing Gus Pontikis, and injuring his father and brother. Then it tore through the Haas vehicle killing Cindy Haas, and severely injuring three other children, who were inside the vehicle. Two other adults inside suffered relatively minor injuries. At least two of the children have steel plates in their heads, and will require additional surgeries in the future. The crash tore Garner’s vehicle in two. He crawled out afterward suffering only scratches. Blood alcohol level A state forensic expert estimated that Garner’s blood alcohol level at the time of the crash was about .25. A person is considered legally intoxicated in Kentucky and most states, with a blood alcohol level of .08. The expert testified that the Valium would have only increased the alcohol’s effects. Extreme indifference Defense attorney David Hoskins never disputed the fact that his client was drinking and driving the day of the crash, or that he had taken Valium, which he had a prescription for. He didn’t dispute that Garner was speeding. Instead, Hoskins told jurors that his client was no murderer, and contended that instead he was guilty of second-degree manslaughter in the killings. To convict of murder, jurors had to find that Garner “manifested an extreme indifference to human life,” which is something Hoskins said didn’t happen. “He was never for one minute in his life indifferent to human life,” Hoskins argued. Differences in charges The difference between the two charges is more than just a legal technicality. Had Garner been convicted of second-degree manslaughter his maximum penalty would have been 10 years in prison rather than life. He would have been eligible for parole after serving 20 percent of his sentence, or about two years, as opposed to being eligible for parole in 20 years with the life sentence. Garner takes stand Raymond Garner was the last witness to take the stand during his two-day trial. Prior to the crash, Garner worked in construction as a foreman. His last project was being in charge of concrete poured for a $6 million church. He was divorced, had served in the Army reserves and has a daughter attending a Christian College. Garner was moving from Anderson, Tenn., to Crittenden, Kentucky. He was going to live with a buddy, who would be his ride to work because Garner knew that his driver’s license had been suspended. The buddy had been through his own battles with alcohol, and Garner said he was hoping he could help him overcome his problems. Garner said the end result of his mixing drugs and alcohol was “a bad accident” that killed “Gus and Cindy.” He broke down on the stand crying. “I would never hurt nobody,” Garner said adding that he thought about the wreck for the last 386 days. Garner told jurors that he was remorseful 24 hours a day for what he had done. “I had never hurt anyone in my life. I had always tried to help people,” he testified. Garner’s brother, John, testified that he thinks his brother suffered a concussion in the wreck and didn’t realize the full extent of what he had done until a couple of days after the crash. “It impacted him real bad. I know at one point he would have taken his own life if he could,” John Garner testified. Under cross-examination, Garner admitted on the stand that he had drunk about six beers throughout the day and taken two or three Valium. He had a wine poured in a cup that he was drinking as he drove down the road. Garner said he didn’t know he was driving at an unsafe speed. He said he wasn’t sure what he said after the wreck. More than one witness testified that Garner claimed that night to have picked up a hitchhiker, who he said was driving the truck and not him. He later changed that story. Garner admitted on the stand that he’s sure it sounded like he was trying to avoid the consequences of his actions in saying that a hitchhiker was driving. The black box from Garner’s vehicle showed that no one else was inside besides the driver. In his closing argument, Trimble noted that this tragedy wasn’t necessary and was “completely avoidable.” Trimble argued that Garner manifested an extreme indifference to human life with every person he came in contact with on the interstate that night. He conceded that Garner does probably have grief over what happened. “To say he didn’t manifest an extreme indifference to human life is preposterous,” Trimble told jurors. Judge Paul Braden scheduled formal sentencing for Sept. 8. Appeal likely Hoskins said he was certain there would be an appeal, and that his client has nothing to lose by appealing the case. “It was a very difficult case for everybody involved. It was a tragedy for everybody,” Hoskins noted. Following the trial, the victims’ families declined to talk with reporters pending the resolution of their lawsuits that are currently pending against Garner.