By Shannon Lukens.
18-year-old Sebastian Craigen was sentenced today in Routt County court, for a crash in North Routt County on Sept. 2. Craigen was the driver of a car with four others in it. Three were injured, one of whom had to be airlifted to Yampa Valley Medical Center. Alcohol was involved and no one had on a seatbelt.
Judge Michael O’Hara sentenced Craigen to 15 days in jail for each of the three girls who were injured, minus two days already served. He was taken from the courtroom to the Routt County Jail to begin the 43 days in the jail.
Craigen pled guilty to Vehicular Assault, Leaving the Scene of an Accident, and Driving Under the Influence. All other charges were dropped.
In addition to the jail sentence, Craigen will be on supervised probation for four years and have to abide by all terms of probation which includes that he can’t break the law, he has to be licensed and insured to drive, and he may not possess or consume any drugs or alcohol illegally, since he is not 21.
Judge O’Hara told Craigen, “I’m saying that because four years of probation could carry you past your 21st birthday where I recognize the rules change a little bit. Do I think it’s a good idea for you to consume drugs and alcohol? I don’t think that’s a good idea for you. I think there are people in the world who should not consume drugs and alcohol because the effect it has on them is not the same as the effect it has on other people. They make bad decisions. They really can’t make good decisions. They get themselves in trouble. They hurt or kill themselves or others.”
In addition to the September crash, Judge O’Hara was advised of another crash on July 3, also in North Routt County. Craigen was driving a friend’s car, with people in it, and he totaled the car. Deputy District Attorney Joseph Bucci told the court that when Craigen crashed his friend’s car, he told her to tell her parents that she did it and she hit a deer. Bucci said she told her parents the truth.
The court showed three videos from that night, of Craigen driving over 50 miles per hour on dirt roads in North Routt County, trying to “drift the vehicle,” before it crashed into a tree. That accident was never reported so there weren’t any charges.
Regarding those videos, Judge O’Hara said during sentencing, “I saw, at least in part, in that first video, people I assume were your friends, you know, laughing, maybe urging you on, sort of engaging all of the behavior except the driving. And I want them to know that none of this is OK. It’s not OK for them to do it. It’s not OK for anybody else to do it either.”
Judge O’Hara ordered Craigen to pay $8,150 in restitution to that family for damages to their Audi.
Other fines include $600 for DUI, $500 for Leaving the Scene of an Accident, and $2,000 for Vehicular Assault. Plus, the cost of four years of supervised probation is $2,400, and there will be mandatory court costs. That supervised probation will be done in Arizona, if Arizona accepts the request since that is where Craigen says he lives now.
Alcohol and drug evaluation and treatment was ordered. However, Craigen told the court that he voluntarily sought rehabilitation for 55 days with inpatient treatment, and then participated in outpatient treatment in Arizona. He told the court he admitted himself nine days after the crash.
Judge O’Hara also said Craigen had a fake I.D. when contacted by law enforcement after the crash. And he had two previous Minor in Possession charges, one for alcohol and one for cannabis.
In sentencing, Judge O’Hara said, “I see a lot of people come through here. Often people who are really young, with drug and alcohol issues and they come back because they broke the law again. They come back because as soon as they walk out of the courtroom, they’re high-fiving their friends and going out and getting high again. Don’t do that. You are playing with fire if you do. Because if you come back to court, having broken the law while you are on probation, you could go to prison, or community corrections, which is a halfway house.”
Judge O’Hara added, “I don’t want to do either of those things to you. I want you to be able to prove to yourself, your family and the community, that what happened here should not define you. That you, as you just said, that’s not you and you want a chance to show everyone that that’s not you. You need to do that. You need to do that as part of the accountability that you should take for what has happened in both of these incidents.”
Judge O’Hara said he had some responsibility to use his position for the sentencing in jail. And he reminded the court that three teenagers were seriously injured in this case.
“I have decided that a jail sentence is appropriate here. What I have decided to do is order you to serve 15 days in jail for each of them (the three girls injured). That is not much. It is not reflective of what I think the harm was that you caused them but it is punishment for the decisions that you had made. It is in an amount that is not going to ruin your life. It is going to allow you to go on with your life after a month and a half. I’ll give you credit for the two days you have already served in the case.”
Judge O’Hara said upon release, Craigen is required to meet immediately with the probation department and set up a payment plan, if necessary.
Before sentencing, Craigen made a statement in court. He told the court he is currently living in Arizona and receiving training to become an EMT.
“So I humbly address the court today to express the deepest remorse and regret for my actions during this past summer. These actions aren’t the person that I want to be. They’re not the person that I can be. They’re not the person who I am going to be going forward. I truly apologize to the community for my actions and the fear that I have imposed upon them. It was incredibly irresponsible for the two accidents that I caused and as well to the families for trusting their children’s wellbeing with me on both of those nights that I violated.”
To the family whose vehicle was damaged (in July)… “I am incredible sorry for the damage that I caused to their vehicle. It showed no respect to their family. It showed no respect to anyone else who was out there. And as well for putting the people in the vehicle in danger. I’m incredible sorry for that. I’ve been friends with (this family) since the 6th grade. Since then, all they’ve showed me is love and care, and they’ve been great supporters of me. And I love them all so much because they’ve done that for me. I’m super sorry that I showed so much disrespect to their family and to their property. And I hope I can make it right.”
“And as well with the September accident, I’m incredible sorry. I’m super sorry to the families who trusted their children’s wellbeing with me on that night. I showed selfishness. I showed recklessness and I showed no care to anyone on that night. I don’t want to be that person. I’m not that person. I won’t be that person.”
Craigen spoke of how the Sept. 2 camping was his birthday party, as he turned 18 on Aug. 31. He was then going abroad for seven months. It was his last time to see his friends before they went off to college. “I really wanted my friends to have a good night. And I chose no reason that I should have done what I did. I never should have gotten behind the wheel of that vehicle. I never should have even driven my vehicle out there. I should have showed more responsibility really, knowing that I was 18 as well. I was going into my adult years and this was incredibly irresponsible for myself to show so much disrespect to all the families.”
“I understand the severity of this accident. And despite this severity, I am incredible grateful that no lives were lost on that night and I really hope that my friends can continue on with their senior year as they had seen before and that I haven’t caused them anything that would affect that for them. Because all of these people, I have been friends with since 6th or 7th grade and they’ve all been my best friends, my closest friends. I would never want to put them in harm’s way. Not even on this night, not any day in my life would I want to put anybody’s life in harm’s way. I’m super sorry to the court and the community and to those families that on that night I did put their lives in danger. And I never want to be in a situation like this again. I will do anything to not to be in a situation like this.”
“I truly realize what my actions could have caused the other families, and I’m committed to rebuilding my life, addressing the root causes of my actions, and working on myself to create a better future for myself and for all the others around me including the people in this community who I affected.”
“I am earnestly seeking the court’s compassion and guidance to strive to rectify my past mistakes and move forward on a path of redemption.”
“I’m truly involved in trying to make a better future for myself and put this past path that I was on behind me and not go anywhere back to it or do anything that I’ve done in this past summer. I never want to be in a situation like this again. I never want to hurt people and I never want anybody to be affected by my actions in a negative way.”
“I understand the severity of the charges I face and I plead to the court to consider the alternatives to incarceration. I am deeply sorry for the people in my hometown for the fear and distress that I caused them and I’m committed to demonstrate through my actions and my commitment to rehabilitation that I am genuinely remorseful and dedicated to making amends.”
Craigen said he will comply with the guidance of his probation officers and will comply with community service. He plans to complete his community service with the Phoenix Fire Department, if allowed.
Craigen’s parents were also in the courtroom, and told Judge O’Hara that they now live in Phoenix, Arizona. Judge O’Hara allowed his father, Robin Craigen, to make a statement. Robin Craigen said he was “deeply sorry to everyone involved for the distress that was caused that night and the worry about recovery since. It is our sincere hope that everybody is fully recovered and is able to continue with their lives as planned previously.”
Robin Craigen said his son, Sebastian, is a different person after the rehabilitation treatment where he worked through “the gravity of his reckless decisions and their consequences all made in the heat of the moment, on a camping trip, on a summer night.”
He said they believe in their son and will support him as best as they can.
Judge O’Hara had some last words for Sebastian Craigen.
“Finally, Mr. Craigen, I told you about people who sit there and everything rolls right off their back and they go right back to doing what they were doing before they walked in here. However, there also are a lot of people who sat up in that chair, thought about what happened, accepted the consequences for their behavior, and decided to change their life. And this is what I hope for you. You’re 18 years old. If you keep engaging in behaviors that are described here in court today, you’re either going to end up killing yourself or you’ll end up being incarcerated for a long time. You don’t want to do either of those things.”
Judge O’Hara said, “You have already started down a path of rehabilitation that if you are honest and true to yourself, can go a long way toward helping you and that’s what I hope is going to happen here.”