Drunken, unlicensed driver sentenced to four years in death of 22-year-old 'gentle giant'

Josiah Oakley's family arrived in matching blue T-shirts, grasping photos of the "gentle giant" they'd lost when an unlicensed drunken driver blew a red light in north Minneapolis in December.

Josiah dressed in a blue cap and gown on his graduation day.

Josiah smiling on the football field with mom on senior night.

Josiah flexing his right bicep for the camera.

Friends and relatives packed a Hennepin County courtroom Monday to confront the motorist who killed 22-year-old Oakley while speeding through an intersection at 85 mph — with a blood alcohol level at nearly three times the legal limit.

"Your brain went in the bottle, while the alcohol went in your body. You no longer had a brain," Sarah Pryor, Oakley's grandmother, said during the emotional sentencing hearing for Sylvester T. Vaughn. "Too many children and families have been killed because someone decided to drink and drive."

Vaughn, 40, received a four-year sentence after pleading guilty to criminal vehicular homicide-gross negligence in connection with the fatal crash on Dec. 11 at N. 42nd and Lyndale avenues. A plea agreement between the prosecution and defense allowed Vaughn, a repeat drunken driver operating on a revoked license, to serve 48 months and dismiss a secondary count of criminal vehicular homicide alleging that he was impaired.

With credit for time in jail since his arrest, Vaughn is expected to serve slightly more than 2 1/3 years in prison and the balance on supervised release.

Oakley's family strongly objected to the deal in light of his "reckless and dangerous behavior" after a prior offense and, in recent months, sought to have the offer rescinded. But since the terms fell within state sentencing guidelines, they were told that wasn't possible.

On Monday, sobs filled the courtroom as three immediate relatives delivered victim impact statements memorializing Oakley, a talented athlete and chess master, while demanding stiffer penalties for negligent drivers who kill. They denounced current sentencing guidelines for those crimes as "a disgrace."

"Forty-eight months sure isn't much of a reason for him to do the right thing," Cynthia Johnson, Oakley's stepmother, said of Vaughn. "And certainly won't prevent him from doing the wrong thing."

"There has to be change," she said, noting that Vaughn will return to normal life — and his five children — in less time that it takes a teenager to complete high school. "How many more need to die senselessly?"

Loved ones tearfully recounted the worst day of their lives in speeches punctuated by painful pauses as their voices broke.

How Oakley had spent the evening with family, celebrating his sister's 21st birthday over dinner at Applebee's. How he excitedly spoke about his job promotion at UPS. How he hugged his siblings and said goodbye before heading to meet some friends on the city's North Side.

He never made it home that night.

Around 12:40 a.m., a police officer at Lyndale and 45th avenues spotted Vaughn's Chevy SUV race by at roughly 85 mph. He traveled through a red light, smashing Oakley's Pontiac SUV at 42nd Avenue. Emergency responders declared Oakley dead at the scene.

"I think to myself, 'It should've been me,'" Pryor recalled in court, listing all the opportunities Oakley was robbed of. He'd never get to take his sister to Las Vegas for her birthday, like he promised. Or play video games with his brothers again. Or go fishing with his uncles.

Oakley always had big plans.

He was a 2019 graduate of Minneapolis Edison High School, where he competed on the chess team that won the Minneapolis Public Schools tournament in 2017 and finished second in the individual competition. Oakley also played football for Edison for two seasons, baseball for four seasons and was a saxophonist in the school band.

He later attended Summit Academy, where he graduated from its electrician program.

In a written statement read by a victim advocate, Oakley's mother, Desiree Oakley, recalled the myriad accomplishments of her only child.

"He could walk at 8 months, drive a golf ball at two, ride a bike at four," wrote Desiree Oakley, noting that he excelled at everything he put his mind to. Oakley could easily solve a Rubik's Cube and became a "boy wonder" at chess, she said. "He was a winner, but without the ego that usually comes with it."

"Now, at night when I water my garden I think about Josiah and how I'm only left with watching my garden grow instead of him."

Vaughn kept his eyes fixed upon the judge as he listened to their impact statements, never allowing his gaze to shift to the gallery.

But when given a chance to speak before the court, Vaughn repeatedly apologized to Oakley's family, especially his mother, for the pain he'd caused. Then assured them that he feels immense remorse.

"I had no excuse driving at all while I was revoked, speeding while I was influenced," he said, choking up and wiping away tears. "I should've known better. I take responsibility for my actions."

"I have to live with this for the rest of my life."

His attorney told the court that Vaughn will seek treatment and counseling while incarcerated, as well as pursue his GED.

In response, Judge Carolina Lamas thanked Oakley's family for making their voices heard. Ultimately, though, she signed off on the terms of the plea agreement.

"I recognize the sentence is not satisfactory to you," Lamas told observers, emphasizing that under guidelines this "is the sentence that is required by law."

She ordered Vaughn to pay $9,743 in restitution.

Two women sat in the front row to support Vaughn, but declined to speak to the media.

In a statement, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty offered condolences to Oakley's family and noted that "the criminal legal system is not equipped to make victims whole because no sentence can make up for their loss and bring a loved one back."

"Mr. Vaughn pled guilty to the highest-chargeable offense based on the crime he committed and today received the sentence the law provides for that crime," she said. "We hope Josiah's family will one day find some degree of peace despite facing a lifetime without him."

Grief spilled into the courtroom Monday long before the proceeding began. Family and friends became increasingly agitated as they waited nearly 40 minutes for court to be called into order. At one point, a man in the gallery loudly declared: "If you want to commit murder, do it with a car!"

Fellow attendees quieted the outbursts with gentle reminders of "Josiah Strong" — the family's new catchphrase printed on T-shirts honoring Oakley.

Oakley's relatives are among a growing group of families who contend that punishments for those who kill and maim with motor vehicles falls short of justice. Their wounds were reopened last month after a 27-year-old motorist with a history of dangerous driving offenses sped through a south Minneapolis intersection and killed five young women.

The driver, Derrick Thompson of Brooklyn Park, was suspected of being under the influence and was later charged with 10 counts of criminal vehicular homicide.

Desiree Oakley vowed to lobby the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines Commission to seek harsher penalties in cases like these, where repeat offenders are given "slaps on the wrist."

"It's not an innocent accident," she said, comparing Vaughn's behavior to someone who slid on an icy road and caused a crash. "He made the choice to get in the car, unlicensed, drink heavily, speed and run a light. That, to me, is intent."

Oakley hopes the apology Vaughn issued in court is sincere.

"I don't want to be bitter," she said. "Maybe his story will inspire other people who are drinking to stop."

Star Tribune staff writer Paul Walsh contributed to this report.