Teen who killed woman in crash could be out of prison soon

Thursday, Feb. 3, 2005 | 10:59 a.m.

A teen who crashed a stolen car while fleeing from police, killing a woman in another vehicle in 2003, could be out of prison before the end of the year.

David Gatlin had originally been charged with murder, but in exchange for a guilty plea the charges against him were dropped to felony reckless driving and failing to stop for a police officer.

Prosecutors on Wednesday did not explain the rationale for the plea bargain.

Gatlin was 16 when the speeding Toyota Camry he was driving slammed into 57-year-old Roberta Stroh's 1996 Mazda 626, instantly killing the mother of three and grandmother of four on Sept. 25, 2003.

Deputy District Attorney Sonia Jiminez urged District Judge Joseph Bonaventure to sentence Gatlin to two consecutive terms of two to six years in prison saying "the defendant had no regard for any of the vehicles or people around him," but Bonaventure ordered the sentences for the two charges to run concurrently. Bonaventure didn't specifically say why he did not order consecutive sentences.

Jiminez Gatlin had been given a plea bargain that benefited him, and she pointed to Gatlin's juvenile criminal history as sufficient enough reason for Bonaventure to sentence Gatlin to consective terms of 2 to 6 years. Jiminez said she was only recently assigned the case. The plea bargain had been handled by Deputy District Attorney Clark Petersen, who could not be reached this morning for comment on the case.

Bonaventure sentenced Gatlin to 28 to 72 months in prison and gave Gatlin credit for the year and 133 days he had already spent behind bars. That

Bonaventure said he was upset that the Department of Parole and Probation failed to include any information about Stroh and her family in their sentencing report. He said while Gatlin had the opportunity to tell Bonaventure why he should be lenient, there were no speakers for the victim. That left the scales of justice imbalanced, Bonaventure said.

"I'm a judge for the community," Bonaventure said. "There is a big hole in this sentencing. I would have liked to have known her (Stroh), seen a picture and had a loved on tell me of the loss."

Bonaventure said while Gatlin spoke of the scar he suffered on his face caused by him going through the window of the car he was driving serving as a constant reminder of the incident the judge wondered "what kind of scars does Roberta's (Stroh) family have."

Gatlin's attorney, Special Public Defender Randall Pike, said the Department of Parole and Probation made several attempts to contact Stroh's family.

Pike said there Stroh's family is suing Gatlin and Metro Police, so perhaps the family is seeking justice via the suit. The lawsuit was filed in January in District Judge Valerie Adair's court, but no schedule has been set in the matter.

When Gatlin crashed into Stroh, police were chasing him because he had allegedly tried to steal belongings from a car. Sheriff Bill Young defended the police handling of the chase.

The Sun's calls to William Brenske, the lawyer representing the Stroh family, were not returned.

Gatlin addressed the court saying "I'd like to offer my condolences and apologies for creating so much pain and grief."

"I'm not a bad person, but I made a couple of bad choices in my life, but now I'm a better person," Gatlin said.

Gatlin said weekly counseling sessions with a psychiatrist had helped him. He says he has "no interest in the past life I lived."

Bonaventure noted that as a juvenile Gatlin had been arrested for petty larceny, assault with a deadly weapon, robbery, possession and consumption of alcohol and other charges.