A 2022 crash killed a 9-year-old boy. The driver who pleaded guilty is going to prison
Linda Vactor placed a large photograph of her 9-year-old grandson on a table in Erie County Judge David Ridge's courtroom on Wednesday morning as she talked of a boy she said gave the best hugs and kisses and "was such a bright light in the world."
Vactor brought tears to the eyes of many in the courtroom, including Chief Deputy District Attorney Steven Liboski, who admitted to becoming emotional, as Vactor spoke of the tremendous loss in her family following the death of George Socie IV in a traffic accident in Erie three days before Christmas in 2022.
George was wearing a new sweater for an upcoming Christmas concert that day, Vactor said. He and his sister were buckled in the family's car because, Vactor said, the family doesn't leave their children at home and thought the safest place for them was in that vehicle.
Investigators said George was killed, and his father and 10-year-old sister were injured, when another vehicle that was speeding and ran a red light crashed into the Socie vehicle at West 12th Street and Pittsburgh Avenue on Dec. 22, 2022.
The driver accused of causing the accident, 22-year-old Cameron J. Stearns, was sentenced by Ridge on Wednesday morning to serve two years and five months to eight years and six months in state prison on his guilty pleas in March to homicide by vehicle, aggravated assault by vehicle, recklessly endangering another person and driving under the influence.
"Often nights I wish I could go back in time and take his place, but I know it's not possible," Stearns said of George as he addressed the court before sentencing.
Ridge sentenced Stearns, of Summit Township, in the standard range on the homicide by vehicle and aggravated assault by vehicle charges, and between the standard and aggravated ranges on the DUI charge. The recklessly endangering charge merged with the aggravated assault charge.
Ridge ran the sentences consecutively, rejecting a request by Stearns' lawyer, Bruce Sandmeyer, to run the sentences concurrently.
"Despite the difficulties you've gone through, none of that decreases your responsibility for what you did on that day," Ridge told Stearns.
The Erie police investigation into the accident determined that Stearns, who was driving a Jeep Compass, was traveling 55 mph in a 40 mph zone and ran a red light at Pittsburgh Avenue as he was traveling east on West 12th Street that early morning. The Socie family was in a Ford Fusion that was turning left from the northbound lane of Pittsburgh Avenue to head west on West 12th Street and had the green left turn arrow, according to police.
George's father and 10-year-old sister were also injured in the crash. Stearns was not reported injured, according to investigators.
Testing after the accident found metabolites of THC, the main psychoactive compound in marijuana, in Stearns' system, according to police, leading to the DUI charge.
Sandmeyer, in his remarks to the court before sentencing, noted Stearns' lack of a criminal record and his cooperation throughout the investigation, including his decisions to waive his preliminary hearing and to plead guilty to charges in the case. He said Stearns takes full responsibility for his actions and grieves for the Socie family's loss, and knows that there is not one piece of restitution he can give to make up for what the family lost.
Stearns was a victim of physical and sexual abuse as a child, and at the time of the crash he was homeless and was living in his vehicle, Sandmeyer told Ridge. But he does have strong family support, including from his mother, who will do everything she can to assist Stearns in moving on with his life, Sandmeyer said.
Vactor, in her remarks to the court, told Stearns he broke two laws on the day of the crash. He broke the law of man by speeding and running a red light, and he broke God's law when he crashed into the Socie vehicle and killed George.
While Stearns was likely celebrating Christmas with his family in 2022, members of her family were planning a funeral for a 9-year-old, Vactor said.
"I hope no one in this room has to plan a funeral for a child," she said.
Contact Tim Hahn at thahn@timesnews.com. Follow him on X @ETNhahn
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Summit man given prison for vehicular homicide that killed boy
