Bradden Crumrine, 21, of Lisbon, sits with his defense attorney Rafael Villegas during sentencing Thursday in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court for failure to stop after a 2022 accident. (Photo by Mary Ann Greier)

LISBON — A 2022 accident called both unfortunate and sad changed the life of a Lisbon teen who’s still suffering from his injuries and on Thursday sent the driver from whose truck he fell to jail for 60 days.

Bradden Crumrine, 21, appeared for sentencing on two counts of failure to stop after an accident before Columbiana County Common Pleas Court Judge Scott Washam, accompanied by his defense attorney Rafael Villegas and a contingent of family members in the courtroom.

“I never wanted anything bad to happen that night,” Crumrine said, saying he was sorry.

Washam placed him under community control, or probation, for three years and required a 60-day term of local incarceration at the county jail as part of the punishment, ordering him to be taken into custody immediately after the hearing. He was ordered to have no contact with the victim.

Villegas asked about work release, since his client has a full-time job, but Washam said he didn’t know about the jail’s policy for that and was not inclined to grant work release. He told Villegas he could file a written motion if he wanted and then the prosecution could respond.

Crumrine was originally indicted for four counts of failure to stop after an accident, but agreed to plead guilty to two of the counts, with one a fourth-degree felony and one a fifth-degree felony. The two remaining counts were dismissed. Since both counts were similar in nature, they were merged for sentencing, with county Assistant Prosecutor Steve Yacovone requesting the sentence be based on the fourth-degree felony. He could have faced up to 18 months in prison.

“We’re happy with the sentence and I hope all the parties can move on after this,” Yacovone said.

He made no recommendation for sentencing, leaving it up to the court. Washam said the injuries in this case were unfortunate and he was sure every person in the courtroom would rather this didn’t happen. He said the circumstances were unlikely to occur again and despite the injuries to the victim, he didn’t believe prison time was appropriate.

The charges all stem from the July 24, 2022 accident that occurred after 3 a.m. on Steubenville Pike Road when Ethan Samuel Hart, who was 16 at the time, fell out of the back of the truck driven by Crumrine and suffered serious physical injuries.

Called Sam by his family and friends, his mother Mandy Daugherty talked to the court about his plans before the accident. She said he was smart, played football and had plans to graduate early and join the U.S. Marines.

“Sam will never have the life he would have had,” she said.

If the vehicle behind the truck had not stopped, she said “Sam would not be here today.”

Daugherty described how his injuries have affected him, how he experiences left side weakness, continuously blurry eyesight which will require a second operation to possibly repair, memory loss and seizures. He had been suicidal, with his mother saying “he felt like he didn’t have any future or reason to live.”

She said both she and her son are in counseling and he’s on medication that helps.

Daugherty said the defendant left a child who was injured and that shows his character and guilt.

Washam asked what happened and she relayed that she was told by the other passengers and those in the other vehicle that the truck was going around a bend with a bump and Sam banged on the roof to try to get Bradden to slow down, but he didn’t. The passengers told him Sam flew out of the back of the truck and one passenger started to open the door to get him to stop. Then Bradden left while one person called her and another was holding Sam.

She said they had been at a party and apparently the cops were called and made everyone leave. She said they should have called the parents of the juveniles to come and pick them up.

Washam questioned her, saying Crumrine indicated in the pre-sentence investigation that he didn’t know Sam was in the back of the truck, but she said “he knew.”

Washam also questioned Crumrine about what happened and he said he didn’t drink or take drugs and he wasn’t going fast. He said he didn’t hear anything on the roof, with the five passengers all talking. A passenger told him that Sam fell out and they all got out of the truck. He left, but knew he had to come back, but then he received what he felt was a threatening text, so he didn’t go back. He turned himself in to the patrol the next day.

When Villegas spoke to the court, he said his client had a large support system and that they not only support him but hold him accountable. He agreed the police should have called the parents instead of sending the teens into the night. He started to turn around to face Sam’s mother, but the judge told him, “You address your comments to me.”

Villegas said Bradden “had a freakout moment” when he saw the victim lying there, but he went to the patrol the next day.

“He had no intention of harming anyone,” he said.

Crumrine’s grandmother spoke on behalf of her grandson, explaining how he grew up, was in sports and graduated high school in 2021, has a full-time job and has a good heart.

“I’m really sorry for what happened and what the family’s been through,” she said.

Sam was in the courtroom with his mother and family, but did not address the court.

Yacovone said the case was a difficult one and “the whole situation is sad.”

“It was an accident that could have been avoided,” he said.

mgreier@mojonews.com