Friday, March 27, 2009 9:30 PM CDT
Fatal Arcola accident results in 6.5-year prison sentence
By HERB MEEKER, Staff Writer
hmeeker@jg-tc.com
TUSCOLA — A dual tragedy played out Friday in a Douglas County courtroom when former Coles County resident Seth Brooks was sentenced to 6½ years in state prison for the fatal accident that killed Matt Foltz of Mattoon last June in Arcola.
The sentencing hearing was about more than the law as family members of both the victim and defendant noted the summer crash haunts them still.
“This is a very sad moment,” said Judge Michael Carroll after pronouncing the sentence in the aggravated driving under the influence conviction. “It is a tragedy for Mr. Foltz’s family and Mr. Brooks’ family as well.”
Carroll ruled out probation or boot camp options for the 25-year-old former Charleston resident, who now lives in Hutsonville. The single-vehicle accident occurred about an hour before dawn on June 13, 2008, at the Canadian National Railroad crossing along Illinois Route 133 in Arcola.
Brooks was driving about 100 mph when his car hit the crossing, went airborne and covered 852 feet before it came to rest on its top. Foltz was ejected from the car when the car hit and severed a power pole.
Carroll noted Brooks has a history of mixing alcohol and driving. He was on court supervision from a DUI conviction in Coles County when the fatality occurred and was eluding law officers before the crash occurred.
He admitted to officers after the crash to drinking and he was convicted on the felony charge during a bench trial before Carroll in February.
Victim impact statements by Foltz family members all attested to the pain and anxiety caused by the wrong decisions by young people regarding alcohol.
“Everything changes when you have a child die,” said Foltz’s mother, Phyllis Rankin. “I never knew something could hurt so much.”
Other Foltz family members talked about the anguish caused by the death of the Foltz, an 18-year-old who had been accepted to a California college the day before his death.They testified how they cannot sleep or face health problems. Most of all they talked about the loss of a man with so much potential.
Douglas County State’s Attorney Kevin Nolan agreed this was not a typical DUI case for him and his staff, including Assistant State’s Attorney Kate Watson, who presented the state’s case during the sentencing hearing.
“I will live with [the sentence],” he said. “It’s just the reality.”
Nolan complimented all parties for their manner during the court proceeding.
“Everyone treated it with the respect it required, including the defendant and his lawyer,” Nolan said. Brooks’ attorney declined to comment Friday.
Brooks offered his remorse for the death of Foltz, who was a friend, and injuries to another passenger, Adam Lacy of Mattoon.
“I think about the events of June 12 and 13 every day and how they could have happened differently. It is ridiculous to think it is possible I don’t have any remorse. Perhaps I should have died,” Brooks said.
He admitted to his alcohol problems as he spoke in the courtroom. “I’m scared. I’m not sure I can trust myself,” he said.
John Brooks, Seth’s father, testified that his son had achieved much in academics and athletics Charleston. He said his son was raised with the right values along with his siblings.
But prosecutor Watson said the sentence should not depend on potential, but past actions by Brooks she described as “impulsive and irrational.”
Watson asked for a sentence of 12 years while the defense asked for impact incarceration or the boot camp program through Illinois Department of Corrections.
Carroll said that Brooks did not need more discipline because he had faced it through ROTC service and through athletics.
“The defendant does not lack discipline. His problem is drinking alcohol,” Carroll said.
The sentence also included a $500 DUI fee and $23,115 in restitution for various costs, including funeral home and cemetery fees, memorial monument costs, lost wages to the victim’s family and costs to Arcola Police Department and Illinois State Police.
Contact Meeker at hmeeker@jg-tc.com or 238-6869
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freedom2speak wrote on Mar 28, 2009 7:26 AM: