Felisha Mayes, 35, of Lima, was sentenced Tuesday in Lima Municipal Court to 90 days in the county jail, with 60 days suspended, on a charge of vehicular involuntary manslaughter, a second-degree misdemeanor. The charge is the result of a traffic accident this summer which caused the death of motorcyclist Jason Gannon.
J Swygart | The Lima News
LIMA — Emotions ran high Tuesday in Lima Municipal Court during a sentencing hearing for a Lima woman charged in the death of a motorcyclist at a city intersection this summer.
The sentenced doled out by Judge Tammie Hursh was not well-received by the victim’s family.
Felisha Mayes, 35, was charged with vehicular homicide, a first-degree misdemeanor, in the July 10 death of Jason Gannon. In October she appeared in Lima Municipal Court and entered into an agreement with prosecutors and pleaded no contest to an amended count of vehicular involuntary manslaughter, a second-degree misdemeanor.
According to a Lima Police Department report, Gannon was traveling southbound on Cole Street, near the intersection of Brice Avenue, at approximately 7:30 p.m. on July 10 when a 2013 Jeep Cherokee driven by Mayes pulled into the intersection and struck his motorcycle.
Lima City Prosecutor Rick Eddy said during an earlier hearing that Gannon laid his motorcycle down in an attempt to avoid being struck by the Jeep but in doing so his skull struck the front wheel of Mayes’ vehicle, causing his instant death.
Eddy said during the October hearing that the amended count was more in keeping with the facts of the case but admitted the victim’s family did not agree with that decision.
Victim’s family blasts defendant
In the days and weeks leading up to Tuesday’s sentencing hearing, Gannon’s family requested that police body camera footage taken at the accident scene, video that was described by Hursh as “very graphic,” be played in open court prior to the imposition of sentence.
The purpose, according to the request, was to show behavior reflecting what family said was a lack of remorse on Mayes’ part in the moments following the crash.
Gannon’s teenage son asked Hursh to allow the video to be played.
“It’s my father. I got no closure when he died. I just want to see my father,” he said.
Hursh said the court is not required to allow the public playing of the video at a sentencing hearing. She watched the video in chambers and asked Eddy to make arrangements for the youth to view the footage.
Gannon’s sister called Mayes a “horrible human being” and asked the court to impose the maximum possible sentence.
“I hate you; my family hates you. We pray every day that you burn in hell,” the woman said.
Hursh said her options were limited when it came to the imposition of a sentence.
“This court has 90 days (in jail, the maximum sentence) to work with, and that’s all,” the judge said. “There is nothing I can do to make the family feel any better, and I’m sorry about that. It’s just my wish and hope that you can hopefully get past the anger.”
Mayes was sentenced to 90 days in jail, with 60 days suspended. She was ordered to serve three years on probation and to undergo a mental health assessment. Her driver’s license was suspended for two years.
