Lawyer Sentenced to 5 years for Killing, Hit and Run on Cyclist



Schultz at his sentencing

The Topeka Capital-Journal has the account of the sentencing of local attorney, Marc Schultz who drunkenly killed a cyclist and drove off with his 5 year old son in the passenger seat.  In April I reported on the suspension of Schultz' Kansas law license.  An excerpt from reporter Steve Fry's CJ story follows:

"A lawyer was sentenced Thursday to more than five years in prison tied to the hit-and-run drunken driving death in September of a bicyclist in rural Shawnee County.  Based on a plea agreement, prosecutors and defense attorneys for Marc Schultz, 40, urged Shawnee County District Court Judge Dave Debenham to sentence him to a total of 43 months after he pleaded no contest to reckless involuntary manslaughter, driving under the influence of alcohol in a fourth or subsequent case and leaving the scene of an accident in which a death occurs, all in the death of Timothy Roberts, 55, the bicyclist. [ . . . ]
Instead, Debenham sentenced Schultz to consecutive terms of 43 months for the manslaughter conviction, 12 months for the drunken driving conviction and seven months for leaving the scene. That totals 62 months, or five years and two months.

In imposing the sentences, Debenham noted Schultz hadn’t stopped to render first aid to Roberts after hitting him with a station wagon but did stop to pick up parts from his damaged vehicle before leaving.

When a defendant pleads guilty or no contest in a plea agreement, the judge isn't bound to the recommended prison term.

Roberts was killed Sept. 12 when the Schultz station wagon struck him from behind as he pedaled westbound in the 5500 block of S.W. 53rd. Schultz' son, 5, was a passenger in the car.

'I commend you on your honesty in this case,' [Judge] Debenham said. 'I'm not sentencing you because you're a bad person. I'm sentencing you because you've done a bad act.'"
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There but for the Grace of God.

Vail Daily News: Investment Banker May Not Face Felony Hit and Run

Randy Wyrick at the Vail Daily News reports that Martin Joel Erzinger (pic,right), a wealthy 52-year old, investment banker with Smith Barnery, struck a deal to plea bargain requiring him to plead guilty to two misdemeanor traffic counts for his hit and run on bicyclist Dr. Steven Milo a NYC plastic surgeon who was seriously injured. Scott H. Greenfield at the excellent Simple Justice blawg featured a post he enstyled It's Good to Be Rich In Colorado on this story yesterday; and, BikeSnob alluded to the plea bargain in his post, Monday. The "heat" and "outrage" stems from the favoritism ambitious Eagle County (Vail) District Attorney Mark Hurlbut (pic, below left) appears to be showering on the fabulous wealthy banker, Mr. Erzinger. This is the coverage at the New York Times.

District Attorney Hurlbut "explains" the plea deal in a column in this AM's edition of the Vail Daily News.  You can read Hurlbut's rationalizations, er explanation for yourself--but it boils down to a consideration of Mr. Erzinger's ability to "write a check, " huh?  Really!

Hurlbut wants to be a State Senator.  This is the link to his website.

DA Hurlbut is the grandstanding local prosecutor who indicted and lost the rape prosecution of Kobe Bryant in what legal commentators described as preposterous from the outset.  Local voters rewarded Hurlbut by not re-electing him as prosecutor, ergo his run for the State Senate--apparently his effort to find private employment is not going all that well.

Notably, Hurlbut has one other infamous bicycle related-prosecution.  He is the same prosecutor who charged two female mountain bikers with felony fraud over competition in the Leadville 100, an important annual Vail area mountain bike race.  This story is worth reading about because as strange as it sounds it involved nothing more than a registered competitive cyclist unable to participate in the bike race, giving her registration materials to another athlete who did participate, and won the race through her athletic endeavors.  The "crime" of riding under the registration of the non-participating athlete's registration was sufficient for Hurlbut to charge felony fraud! 

What you need to think about is that Hurlbut is operating at the nexus of law, ambition, power, and materialism at the extremes.  His decision to plea bargain the crimes of vehicular assault on a cyclist and fleeing the scene to conceal the criminal offense, to misdemeanors for a wealthy investment banker is astonishing and outrageous.  So it's not surprising that as Hurlbut, himself notes. he has received over 1000 emails "over the weekend."  Apparently Hurlbut was counting on something other than "outrage" when he cut this deal with Mr. Erzinger.

The world is often a hostile and perilous place.  Money helps.

Colorado Hit-Skip Attorney Suspended for 3-Years

In April I told you about Colorado attorney Jeffrey S. Detlefs (pic) who was convicted of vehicular assault, and hit-skip after striking a cyclist who by coincidence was a local public defender.

Detlefs was driving while drinking and his child was in his SUV.  In my April account I reported that he received a 9-year prison sentence.  This morning, the Legal Profession blawg reports that Detlefs received a 3-year license suspension, um Law license.   Here's link to the opinion syllabus and a link to the story at the Legal Profession blawg.

Corporate Lawyer Gets 9 Years for Hit and Run on Cyclist

The ABAJournal reports that a corporate lawyer is going to jail for a hit and run accident involving a Jefferson County, Colorado public Defender.  Here's the version from the Denver Post:

"Jeffrey Scott Detlefs, 57, was an attorney with Kerr Brosseau Bartlett O'Brien last August when his Lexus sport-utility vehicle struck Jefferson County public defender Rex Hegyi, who was riding his bicycle along the Evergreen Parkway ramp to Interstate 70.

Detlefs drove off with his three children -- 11-year-old twins and an 8-year-old -- in the vehicle. His license plate fell off in the collision, and he was arrested at his home a short time later.  Hegyi was seriously injured but recovered.

The Denver District Attorney's office prosecuted the case because Hegyi is a Jefferson County public defender. Detlefs was sentenced last Friday and taken immediately to prison. He agreed to plead guilty in January. His sentence includes a number of conditions, including a review of his sentence after he serves a minimum of 120 days in state prison.

At that time, a judge could convert his sentence to 10 years of probation, said Lynn Kimbrough, a spokeswoman for the Denver District Attorney's Office.

Detlefs was previously arrested in Littleton on a drunken-driving charge in 1985. He was cited for dangerous mountain driving in 2004 in Lake County, and pleaded guilty to speeding in the case, according to computerized court records.

As a lawyer, Detlefs represented insurance companies in coverage disputes and other matters for more than 26 years.

The conviction on a felony change -- or any charge involving alcohol -- mandates a review and decision by the Colorado Supreme Court's Office of Attorney Regulation before Detlefs would be allowed to practice law again when he is released from prison, according to the agency."
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It is said that the Universe has an endless capacity to teach you the lessons you need to learn.  In Mr Detlefs' case it sounds like it may have had something to do with a longstanding use and abuse of alcohol. 

I'm relieved for him and his children that he did not have to kill someone to get this message, and I empathize like almost know one else can over the loss of status, and the legal peril he's experience.  As a cyclist, I am relieved that Colorado takes these sorts of criminal acts very seriously.

Mr. Detlefs sounds like he'll be uniquely equipped to tell a powerful story of recovery, if he can recover.