Student gets suspended term in homicide by vehicle case
By: Charlene Bielema, Herald Editor 	January 08, 2004

CLINTON - A little more than a year ago, Richard McDermott was a
criminal justice major at Western Illinois University.

A 2002 graduate of Central High School in DeWitt, he was known in his
community for being a popular, all-around good student with a bright
future.

But his life took a turn during the early morning hours of Dec. 21,
2002, when after attending a drinking party, McDermott fell asleep at
the wheel and crashed into a truck on what is commonly known as
Muskrat Curve on old U.S. 61 near DeWitt. Joel Wylie, 42, of
Maquoketa, died as a result of the collision, which happened while he
was on his way to go hunting.

On Wednesday, McDermott - who pleaded guilty to homicide by vehicle
after admitting in November that his reckless driving led to the death
- relied on his favorable history and his future potential to save him
from a possible 10 years in prison.

At the end of the hearing, Clinton County District Court Judge David
Sivright did order McDermott to serve up to 10 years in prison;
however, the prison term and the accompanying $1,000 fine were
suspended.

Instead, McDermott will be allowed to attend college until the end of
the school year, then must come back to Clinton County and be placed
under house arrest at his mother's home with the use of electronic
monitoring during the summer.

At the end of the summer, McDermott will be allowed to attend college
at the University of Northern Iowa, where he will attend classes after
changing his major. He also will remain under a three-year supervised
probation that will prohibit him from drinking, make him submit to
random testing and keep him out of taverns. He also must pay victim
restitution and $150,000 to the estate of Joel Wylie.

Dozens of letters received by Sivright from community members asked
for leniency. Those sentiments were reiterated by about a half dozen
people who stood up in the crowded courtroom to address Sivright.

"What good is a prison sentence going to do for Ricky?" asked DeWitt
resident Darwin Kilburg, whose 18-year-old daughter was killed in an
alcohol-related accident in 1988. He said putting McDermott in jail
would be the wrong thing to do. Some also asked for a deferred
judgment.

Sivright, who also ordered the 20-year-old to complete 200 hours of
community service and talk to area students about drinking and driving
consequences, said he was not happy with the sentence, but had limited
options. He thought prison was too excessive, but wanted McDermott to
be punished for his actions.

"I'm going to take away your summer," Sivright said, adding that he
wanted to put McDermott in the Clinton County Jail. That sentencing
option was not available to him under Iowa Code.

Clinton County Attorney Mike Wolf asked for incarceration. He said
Wylie was a caretaker of his parents; he was living at their home and
assisting in their day-to-day lives before he was killed.

"Their joy in life came from having two sons," added Steven Kahler,
the Maquoketa attorney who spoke on behalf of Wylie's family during
the hearing.

After the sentencing, which at times was punctuated with sobs, Kahler
said he and the family agreed to trust Sivright's judgment.

"I have a great respect for the judge and knew that it would be well
thought out," he said.

The prosecution and the defense also were pleased with the outcome.

Wolf said he could have filed charges that would have included the
fact that drunken driving was involved since McDermott did have a
blood alcohol content of .105 after the accident. That enhanced charge
could have put McDermott in jail for 25 years. Instead, Wolf chose to
go with the lesser charge after weighing the benefit of putting
McDermott behind bars for a quarter of a century.

"I have no doubt that Ricky McDermott will have a bright future," he said.

Defense attorney Jack Wolfe of Clinton, although grateful that his
client stayed out of prison, said the state needs to take a look at
how it deals with drunken driving and when it leads to an unintended
death.

He pointed out that if McDermott had not crashed into the truck, he
would have faced on operating while intoxicated charge that would have
led to a fine and possibly a two-day stay in jail. His question is how
do you sentence in a manner to deter crime when the death is
unintended in the first place? His belief is that the underlying
problem of drinking and driving must be addressed.

"It was a just disposition," he said. "I'm just bothered by the law."

Copyright Clinton Herald 2004