Man sentenced to 35 years for crash that killed his 2 sons

 

WAUKESHA, Wis. (CBS 58) -- A Waukesha County judge sentenced a Milwaukee man to 35 years in prison Monday for causing a crash last December that killed two of his sons.

Paul Vinson, 30, tearfully apologized to the court during his sentencing hearing. Vinson reached an agreement with prosecutors where he pleaded guilty to five felony counts of causing injury or death by vehicle while under the influence and possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. 

Vinson was originally charged with 18 different felony counts, but the other 13 were dismissed as part of the agreement. During the hearing, Vinson apologized to the court for having not pleaded guilty sooner.

"It's hard to know I'm the reason my sons are not here anymore, you know?" Vinson said. "Pleading guilty to something like that, it takes a lot out of a person."

Last Dec. 20, Vinson fled from a Waukesha County sheriff's deputy who tried to stop him for speeding, having illegally tinted windows and not having a rear license plate. After initially stopping, Vinson took off and reached speeds faster than 110 miles per hour before losing control and flipping the car on Golf Road in the Town of Delafield.

Vinson had five passengers in the car at the time, including his three children, his 14-year-old niece and his girlfriend. Vinson's two 10-year-old sons died at the scene. Prosecutors said Monday his niece still hasn't regained the use of one of her arms since the crash.

One of the boys' mothers wrote a letter to be read at the hearing. She said she wanted to deliver the message in person but couldn't because she was watching another child. A victim services coordinator read the letter aloud as Vinson wiped his eyes with tissues.

"He's not here, Paul. Do you understand that I cry every single day?" the letter read. "I wake up every single night I go to sleep 'cause I can't hear or see my kid anymore."

Waukesha County District Attorney Sue Opper asked Judge J. Arthur Melvin, III for a sentence of 30 years in prison followed by 20 years of extended supervision. Vinson's attorney, Steven Hughes, requested a 10-year prison sentence followed by 30 years of extended supervision.

"I understand his family and friends portray him as a good father, but a good father doesn't do that," Opper said. "A good father doesn't put their young children in the back of a car with no seatbelt, smoke marijuana and then drive 100 miles an hour."

Melvin handed down a punishment even harsher than prosecutors sought, sentencing Vinson to 35 years in prison followed by 32 years of extended supervision.

Melvin listed several circumstances around that crash that informed his sentencing decision. The four children were not wearing seatbelts, and Vinson had previously been cited four different times for not restraining his kids in the car.

Vinson also had six ounces of marijuana in the trunk of the car and was under the influence of marijuana. He also had a handgun in the truck that was modified with an extended magazine and a "switch" that allowed the gun to fire at an automatic rate.

"That's incredibly reckless," Melvin said after listing the facts of the case. "And, frankly, I think the severity is nearly off the scales."

Before Melvin read out the sentence, Vinson said he understood time in prison was meant to be punishment and a deterrent, but nothing would be worse than the realization he's responsible for his sons' death.

"I promise you, judge, I'm punished," Vinson said. "Regardless of what sentence you give me, I'm gonna have to deal with this for the rest of my life. I'm punished. I am punished."

Melvin also noted Vinson had never received a Wisconsin driver's license, according to state records.

Following the sentencing, both Hughes and Vinson's relatives declined to speak with reporters.