In Columbus, the end comes to a criminal case two years in the making. Amber Fernandez was sentenced in the hit/run death of Jeff Stevenson and received a very severe wrist slap – instead of being punished for 4-8 years for killing Jeff Stevenson, or even 1-3 years for the 3rd Degree Felony of Leaving the Scene, the judge gave her a whopping THIRTY DAYS for running away from the scene of what her lawyer called a “freak accident…”
On Feb 27, 2012 Ms. Fernandez plead guilty to one count of “Failure to Stop After an Accident” – a 3rd degree felony. She was sentenced yesterday to 30 days – yes… you read that right… THIRTY FREAKING DAYS. You can read John Futty’s story in the Columbus Dispatch here – I have had the honor of representing Jeff’s Mom in the civil case – this sentence, frankly, makes me sick…
This case illustrates why folks hit… and run…
On May 21, 2010 Jeff Stevenson hit by a car and left for dead. He was struck around 230 -3am. By the time Jeff’s body was found around 5am by a family on their way to move a family member to Georgia, it had already been a few rainy hours since the crash. Any potential “crime scene” had been driven over by many cars and washed away by the rain. Police found some smashed bike and car parts at the scene, but little else was useable. Of course, by running away Amber was able to avoid helping Jeff, or perhaps help make his last moments on earth more comfortable… but that’s another story…
Police did get a tip and were able to track down Amber’s car at a body shop. They retrieved her windshield from the garbage of the body shop and matched Jeff’s DNA to DNA found on the windshield. MOre than a year after the crash Amber was charged with two crimes – Leaving the Scene and Tampering with Evidence. She was NOT charged with any homicide crimes as police could not piece together what happened. Of course, by the time police knew anything about Amber Fernandez anything that MIGHT have been in her system had long since flushed out…and any evidence from the scene was gone.
Amber was driving home from her shift as a bartender at a local sports bar when she hit and killed Jeff.
Her defense was the Oh So Typical Hit/Run Defense – stop me if you’ve heard THIS one before – She claims that while she knew she hit “something” she didn’t know she’d smashed into “someONE” – that she’d hit a human being… and she didn’t stop because…er.. well… we will talk about that below. However, her lawyer in his “Sentencing Memorandum” DOES however, admit that as Amber was driving home an “unfortunate event” occurred – yea… thanks a lot for saying THAT much buddy…
The Sentencing Memo also leaves unexplained something else – why, after hearing media reports that a young man had been killed by a hit/run driver around the very same time she was driving home, and that this young man had been killed on the very same road she used to get home, why this poor, distraught, remorseful woman didn’t call police, turn herself in, invite police to look at her car or do ANYTHING but try to hide eviden ..er.. get her car fixed quick before anyone checked it out …
Ahhhh… but the Memo does note that Amber “…cooperated with the investigation fully…” Of course, such cooperation didn’t occur until AFTER the police got a tip, found her car at the body shop being all fixed up, grabbed the smashed windshield from the garbage and matched up the DNA from Jeff Stevenson to the bits of his body that remained embedded in Amber’s windshield … yea, after all that Amber was oh so very cooperative…
The Sentencing Memo fails to explain whether Amber was aware of the ghost bike which was placed at the scene in a well-publicized ceremony, or how she felt driving by that bike day after day after day after day, or whether she changed her route to avoid seeing the ghost bike or being haunted by what she had done – really, the Memo fails to give us any reaction Amber had to finding out she had killed Jeff… other than to say she has been diagnosed with “post traumatic stress disorder” and “depression” and “panic attacks”- poor baby… The Memo also fails to note that Jeff Stevenson’s diagnosis remains the same… dead.
I mean, what did she THINK in those days after the crash – “Oh, that must have been somebody ELSE who hit that poor young fellow on the bike – couldn’t have been ME!” Did she see all the momentos Jeff’s friends left under a tree at the scene? The skateboards and stuffed animals and photos of Jeff flying on his board, and the handwritten notes on the bike? Did she see the Dispatch coverage, the TV Coverage or Jeff’s Obituary– – was there no “buzz” at the bar she worked at about this horrific death? A young man struck and left for dead, a grieving Mom – such a horrific scenario – … what did she think about THAT? The Sentencing Memo doesn’t say …
Neal Young’s words from “Ohio” come to mind…
“What if you knew her
And found her dead on the ground
How can you run when you know?”
So, Amber Fernandez, after hitting and running and failing to report and being caught by police and pleading guilty to a felony hit/run, now ponies up to the bar and lays out her tale of woe to the judge – Her Sentencing Memo describes her oh so stressful life history filled with divorce and moving around and OSU classes and how she now has PTSD caused by her killing Jeff Stevenson… she lays it out and she begs for “community control” – no jail at all. At least the judge wisely denied THAT request, anyway.
Amber’s Sentencing Memo sheds some light on her “version” of what happened – According to the Sentencing Memo she “remembers looking over her left shoulder and then reaching for her cell phone lying on the passenger seat next to her when SOMETHING HIT HER SUV breaking the windshield” – The lawyer’s Memo goes on to tell the court that Amber was uncertain whether she’d “hit a pole a deer or what” but “being a single female in a dark desolate area at 250am she continued home” – he described it as a “freak accident”
wow… just wow…
There’s more wrong with that description than I can begin to yell about – I think my next book will be on hit/run killings and the killers who get off easy – we can call it “A Pole, A Deer, or WHAT” –
Since when does crashing your car when you are a “single female” give you the right to leave the scene? This was NOT some “desolate area” as Amber argues – this was Sawmill Road & Bright, near the bridge that goes over I-270 -a VERY well-lit busy multi-lane roadway with any number of businesses nearby – Was it raining? Probably – but rain doesn’t give you the right to sneak away from the mess you’ve made either…
And… of course… since her cell phone was right there where she was looking for it when she clobbered, and killed, Jeff Stevenson – why not whip that baby out and call 911 and say “Help, I am a single female in a desolate area and SOMETHING HIT MY CAR” or whatever … I’m sure the cops would have been on it very quickly… but leave the scene? With Jeff’s DNA embedded in your windshield?
So Amber pitches “Community Control” to the court – begging for no jail time – and does a song and dance about how much killing Jeff Stevenson has hurt her… which is, of course, confirmed by her mom… Again, from John Futty’s story in the Dispatch: “…Fernandez’s mother, Stacy Russell, said her daughter has suffered panic attacks and threatened suicide over the incident….”
Amber, at least, had to listen to Mrs. Stevenson talk about her pride and joy, Jeff, and his two passions – art and skateboarding. I don’t think she really “got” the depth of a Mom’s pain, though – dealing with the loss of her only child – a delightful and loving young man she had raised alone for 20 years – a beautiful spirit with energy and creativity in abundance – I just don’t think Amber got that… in fact, “loss” is not the right word – in fact, it’s a horrible word – hit and run death – killing – the cowardly act of an idiot driver…
No one thinks Amber Fernandez intended to hit Jeff Stevenson, but it FEELS like murder to a parent – a Mom who now has to live with the images of that scene that her brain creates- images of her beautiful young man dying, helpless and alone, in the rain, on the side of the road all because some idiot yaywhoo wasn’t watching where she was going and doesn’t want to stop and see what she smashed into…
I wonder what Amber felt when, as described again by John Futty, Mrs Stevenson’s “… voice caught as she told the judge that he was “left by the side of the road, unattended and alone,” by a driver who “made no attempt to assist or call 911.””
The kicker though was when the defense argued that a polygraph expert had examined Amber – From John Futty’s story: “… The defense hired Randy Walker, a former Columbus police officer and certified polygraphist, who found that Fernandez was being truthful when she said she wasn’t aware that she had struck a bicyclist….”
Well, that makes sense, right. I mean OF COURSE she didnt KNOW she hit a live human being – SHE WAS DRIVING A TWO TON BOWLING BALL DOWN THE ROAD WHILE LOOKING FOR HER CELL PHONE – so she was in no position to “see” ANYTHING or anyone in front of her, let alone what she had hit – she was, in essence, driving blindfolded… had she STOPPED she would have very quickly discovered that yes, she had indeed hit a human being… so her action of leaving the scene enabled her to “honestly” state that she didn’t know she had hit a cyclist…
So what happened to her? WEll, Common Pleas Judge Guy Reece sentenced Fernandez to 30 days in the Franklin County jail, fined her $5,000 and placed her on probation for three years. He also suspended her driver’s license for three years.
Laa…dee… freakin… da –
The judge apparently decided a 6 month or 1 or 2 or 3 year sentence was what, too harsh? Jeff’s MOM certainly got a life sentence in this deal – 30 days, to me, is ridiculous… the ONLY message sent by that sentence is RUN BABY RUN if you happen to hit “something” … because if you stick around you are going to get nailed for vehicular homicide, but if you RUN AWAY like a coward, and whine about your increased stress, you might get 30 days…
It would have been interesting to know when Amber DID become aware that she had killed Jeff… and how long she hid that fact from police as she tried to get rid of the evidence…
I represented Jeff’s mom in the civil case. Fortunately, we were able to resolve that with Amber’s insurer without litigation. In cases where people lie to their insurance company about what happened, the insurer has the right to deny coverage – which the insurer here initially considered… we were able to convince the insurer that this would be a very very bad idea, and they paid up the policy limits… so no civil suit was required, nor would one have served any real purpose, except to cause more pain to Mrs. Stevenson and cause her to spend more time and money dealing with Amber Fernandez, and probably lead Amber into bankruptcy, where the most we would have recovered would have been the policy limits anyway.
I understand very well that this is a tough case for the prosecution. You can’t indict someone for vehicular homicide if you can’t prove exactly what happened in the crash, and why. Running away prevented that. You also cannot make Amber testify in the criminal case – so there was no way of knowing WHAT had happened in the crash. The crash scene was hours old by the time the police arrived, and debris had been scattered up by passing vehicles. It would have been virtually impossible to prove what had actually happened to cause the crash. Amber’s pre-sentence statements in her Sentencing Memo are the words of her lawyer, not subject to truth finding or cross-examination. But… they are all we’ve got…
So, again, WHY do people hit..and run? Some run because they can avoid BIG time prison and only spend 30 days in jail… Some run because they hope to flush the juice out of their system before facing up to reality or giving a urine sample to cops … Some run because they have other legal issues about which they do not wish to converse with police officers… Some apparently run because they are single women in desolate areas who hit” something”, but are afraid to stop, or even call 911 from their cell phone – ALL of these folks have one thing in common – they are common, ordinary cowards who are afraid to face up to the consequences of their actions and who deserve, in my mind, to be treated as thugs and thieves and given stiff penalties – when folks realize that the penalty for running is greater than the penalty for sticking around, more folks will stick around instead of running away …
In this case Amber’s lawyer argues that she “…cooperated with the investigation fully…” He leaves out the words “… once cops were able to track her down and confront her with evidence that she killed Jeff Stevenson…” She, in fact, failed to “cooperate” at all by failing to call 911 at the scene, failing to stop and help Jeff, failing to call police after it became abundantly clear that her car hit and killed a person – I mean what did she do, wash the blood off the windshield the next day and run over to the body shop??
Sheeeeesh… Sick… I think… is too calm a word for my reaction to Amber’s approach to sentencing and the 30 days she will hopefully serve… hopefully they are the most miserable 30 days of her life – which will do nothing to help Mrs. Stevenson cope with the next several thousand miserable days and nights she is facing…
© 2024.
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Well written. Amber has been rewarded for being a coward. The system failed us miserably.
Meanwhile, no calls for a law that leaving the scene of an accident with a death will result in a minimum prison time of at least 10 years from our do nothing legislature.
(BTW, I-270, not 275)
Disgusting. I know people who have done more time for complaining about the government! LOL JK. Thanks for your work on the front lines and keeping us informed Steve. Both Judge Guy Reece and Prosecutor Ron O’ Brien are up for election in November, it’s time to give them an opportunity to try the public sector, O’Brien has never had a real job and it has been a while for Reece. We need to remind the cycling community or anybody that believes we should not reward criminals that both Reece and O’Brien are guilty of poor judgement and need to be removed.
Thank you so much for this well written piece. We couldn’t have said it better…
Thanks… yea, I ‘ll fix that – thinking about CIncinnati…
Thank you so much for writing this. It is so nice to hear about Jeff to hear his side. In the court room all we heard was all about Amber. How awful it has been for her. As soon as she found out that she was not going to get any prison time the crying and shaking stopped. I wish this could be on the front page of the paper. Thank you again.
it makes me wonder what the hell our system of laws and “justice” exists for, because certainly it is failing to punish those who commit crimes and wantonly, negligently, knowingly (as evidenced by the attempts to leave the scene and hide the evidence) kill innocent people who happen to be traveling on a more vulnerable mode of transportation than a 2 ton armored vehicle.
Judge Guy Reece is not getting my vote.
I would like to know why it was never asked that if she admitted in court she thought she hit a pole and a deer but got out and saw nothing…drove home…turned on the t.v. once over the next 5 days…and it never dawned on her that the “pole” was Jeff’s bike , and the “deer” was Jeff. It was the same location that she admitted to hitting “something”!!!! Would a normal , caring person not have called the police and said” Oh my god!!! I think it was me!” Admit to the crime and apologize then? She was soooooooooooo sorry in court and I even felt empathy for her until I thought about this….If you really did care about him or the family…why did they have to hunt you down??? Oh that’s right…I forgot …she plea bargained that part of the story!!!! I admit…accidents happen and people make bad choices….but how do you live with trying to run from the truth after you kill someone? The justice system failed us and I could not believe the court made her sound like the victim while I sat next to his mother….who is the real victim! The only thing we can hold onto is she will be judged by the almighty judge one day and have to answer to him….
The only solution I can think of is to have different degrees of hit-n-run…
1st degree – Leaving the scene of an accident where someone died.
2nd degree – Leaving the scene of an accident where someone is injured (and by “injured” I mean they need a band-aid).
3rd degree – Simple hit-n-run; Leaving the scene of an accident.
Needless to say, #1 & #2 should all carry penalties in excess of “just an accident” that results in injury or death.
The statutes should also provide for sentencing that exceeds the penalties for DUI/DWI if there is ANY suspicion that the driver was under the influence of anything, but they succeeded in hiding for long enough to avoid proper testing. If someone hit-n-runs, the burden should be on THEM to provide breath/blood/urine/hair samples to the police in a timely manner, in order to get a reduced sentence. Otherwise the maximum sentence should apply. This would not be a “presumption of guilt” (as such) but rather just applying sentencing and sentencing guidelines that encourage drivers to do the right thing, as soon as practicable.
These are good questions. Every case and judge are different. In the Cleveland case where Kelly Cox admitted, eventually, drinking and killing Judge Chip Henry, the trial judge had a conversation with Cox at the time he took the guilty plea, and before sentencing. Even then she said she had had “a drink” despite the fact she blew a 0.28% BAC. She confirmed her lie in response to the judge’s question, and later “admitted” more than this… It sounds like this judge never asked anything of Amber Fernandez? I wish I had known about the hearing as I would have attended. I will probably get the transcript from the court reporter…
30 days for a felony Leaving the Scene is ridiculous. Sara Bender was convicted of a misdemeanor leaving the scene violation when the struck and killed Dr. Crowley on TOSRV, then drove home and parked her SUV in the garage. She got SIXTY days on a misdemeanor, which was still, to me, a ridiculous sentence…
Until the punishment for leaving the scene becomes worse than the punishment for sticking around we will continue to see this occur in epidemic numbers…
Why was it not brought up that she had had a previous DUI? Have you checked her past traffic citations? Also why were her family and friends not given the information for sending the judge letters of support for Jeffrey? Just curious.
I should have said Jeff’s family & friends not her’s. Sorry!
I was not aware of the sentencing – wish I had been. I usually publish the name and address of the Judge so folks can send in their letters to the judge and let the judge know how the “community” feels about this.
It is interesting that Amber is not facing the same charges that a hit-n-run driver is facing here in Tucson. A 21 year, driving on a suspended license, is facing at least five in the State Pen. The DA is not backing down on the charge. She wants to ‘send’ a message that is is NOT OK to hit a bicyclist and then take off. The same is happening with a fatal ped accident where the ped was totally responsible. The arresting officer even advised the actor of the fact that he may have received a citation, now he is facing five to ten. Maybe the State of Ohio needs to pony up and start doing the same thing. It would definitely lower the number of bicycle/auto collisions….And the last thing is that Amber needs a serious wake up call. Revoke her driving privileges, for life. Now she becomes the bicyclist and might just end up looking over her shoulder, for a long time…
yea the judge even mentioned during the trial how amber had so many friends and family there to support her! If we had known that would impress him, we also could have filled the court room with Jeff’s friends and family.!!!!!!!!!! The day of the accident Jeff’s friends filled the room and the hallway in support of him and I am sure they would have all been there if we had known that would make such a difference to the judge!!!! Like Jackie said…”It is over now and there is nothing we can change” , but I sat there in disbelief beside Jeff’s mother as she listened to all this and remained dignified . I am very proud to call her my friend .
Steve, thank you for excellent information on how and why the system failed Jeff Stevenson. It was very well written and most insightful. I continue to not understand why tampering with evidence was thrown out?? It appears to me there was a lot of poor judgement involved in this case. I strongly feel that Both Judge Guy Reece and Prosecutor Ron O’Brien are up for election in November, it’s time to vote them out. Then we need to begin the process of Jeff’s Law. Leaving the scene of an accident with a death will result in minimum prison time of at least 10 years.
Jeff’s Great Aunt
Karen Tevis (Stevenson)
Karen, thanks for taking the time to read this and reach out. I believe the tampering charge was thrown out as part of Amber’s agreement to plead guilty to the Leaving the Scene charge. It was a plea deal – the prosecutor gave up a bit to get a conviction. It saved Jeff’s mom from enduring a trial – and anything can happen at a trial – from the best to the worst – The sentence for the felony, to me, is still just shocking…
Steve, such a great article. As everyone else that has watched this trial unfold, we are sick and tired of the “poor” Amber-like people who are so stressed out after killing someone. Jeff was such a great rising star in the art world and in the prime of life. As most licensed drivers know, driving a car after working in a bar until the wee hours of the morning requires the up most attention. I agree with everyone else that justice must be served somehow. Since this sham of a case is over, the only path forward is to push for a “Jeff” law that actually makes it a crime to kill someone in a hit and run accident. I also am strongly against plea bargaining to a lessor sentence. The sentence needs to fit the crime. PLEASE do all you can to get this judge and prosecuting attorney out of office. This case needs to be all over the news media. I pray for my cousin that this injustice will somehow be righted. Thirty days jail time is a slap in the face of all decent people who would have stopped after hitting anything to see exactly what had happened. I agree with Karen that this makes me sick to my stomach. Please see what you can do about it.
Mel Leib, St. Louis, Missouri. Cousin of Jackie.
A human being named Jeff lost his life due to a woman named
Amber hitting him with her car while he was on his bike. She stated that she thought she hit a deer or something. Well, it was a human being. Know matter what she thought she hit she was in the wrong for not calling 911 immediately! Had Amber been a responsible human being she would have stopped and made the phone call for help. Her behavior was that of a coward. It makes me sick to think that she can go on with her life like nothing happened when due to her behavior Jeff’s life was lost. I am sure she did not mean to hit Jeff on his bike but she did and there is no justice because he lost his life and she goes on with her life.
Steve, What is the process to try to get Jeff’s Law pass?
Is this feasable? Where do we go now?
Thank you for all your help and support.
Karen, Thanks for the note and the good idea of making Leaving the Scene a more severely punished crime. There are two levels of this crime now – Felony and Misdemeanor. Here, Amber Fernandez was found guilty of a felony. The judge had wide discretion to fashion a sentence that would meet the various goals of sentencing… why he thought 30 days would do the trick is way beyond me.
The process for getting a new law created is definitely difficult and tangled. The best approach is to find a friendly member of the Ohio HOuse or Sentate who WANTS the law, and use that person as your Go To Point Person to help get the law drafted, proposed, and through the complex process… the more friendly members the better… However, I can tell you this will be difficult. First, there are already penalties attached to this crime which could have sent her away for a number of years – the judge, in his infinite wisdom, chose to not do that. Second, “mandatory” punishments are generally frowned upon. Third, creating crimes from “accidents” is not favored by our legislature. I’ve been working with the Right of Way group for several years to get penalties changed for “minor” right of way violations when someone is killed or maimed… and we’ve been stymied every year… To work a new law you need organizational abilities, knowledge of the system, an “in” with members of the legislature and persistence… it may take years, it may never happen, but you’ve got to really work and fight for it…
I am very disturbed by this story. I feel for the Stevenson family and no mother should ever have to go through this. I myself am no saint when it comes to drinking and driving. I have a DUI on my record and know I was wrong by drinking and driving. I did not hurt anyone or get in accident, I forgot to use a turn signal. I can say that I was punished more harsh than she was and I didn’t blow and had a good attorney. Since my DUI it was a wake up call because part of my punishment was going to this MADD thing where you got to hear stories from mothers and fathers about their children that were drunk drivers or were the victim of a drunk driver. That was the biggest wake up call for me and made me think about the what if I had done this or that. It was something I knew I could not live with. From that day on I can admit I will not drink and drive or get in the car with anyone who has. I have even been the first to call 1800-grabdui on friends and others I have seen driving that should not be. My judge in franklin county had no sympathy on me at all and did not care what I had to say. I only got 4 days but what I had to go through was horrible. But to me 30 days is nothing it is a slap on the wrist and having a prior DUI should have been brought up. You know that when she saw the accident on the news, she knew deep down it was her and she did not care, but yet we are suppose to feel sorry for her…..no thats crazy she knew what she did was wrong. Hitting a deer on Sawmill Rd are you crazy there are no woods. When I saw the pics of the bike and his shoe that broke my heart she had to be going pretty fast. Then it hurts me to know that she gets to play depressed and so remorseful for what she did.*** For the Stevenson family I am so sorry for your loss I wish there was more I could do for you. I hope that one day people can learn from this story and that Jeff’s Law can prevent this in the future.
i am so sorry know what you are going though , the guy that did this is out and the mother of the hit and run is outraged and can’t under stand this at all!!!!!!! God bless you all,
I mean no disrespect to either party, drivers are way too busy these days and should be re-taught how to pay more attention to the road and how important/deadly its is to not pay attention! I am guilty of taking my eyes off the road more than I should. I have little ones in the car, I know how kids whining, phones ringing and the radio can be distracting.
Again no disrespect, but as a driver I would never expect a bicyclist on the road at 3am and in the rain! I can see where it would not occur to someone that they have hit a person!
You also cannot assume the driver was drunk. She was a bartender. I have been a bartender and had tabs at the end of the night with my name because of friends and family coming in on my shift.
I see, as a mother where you want someone to pay for the life taking damage that was done to her sweet innocent son! But I also see a girl who’s life is ruined because of the unimaginable freak perfect storm that was created in the wee hours of the morning.
Both women will suffer for the rest of their lives! No jail time or ill will can ever come close to easing the pain of losing someone or for that matter unintentionally killing someone.
THanks for your note. I understand that folks don’t “expect” a bicyclist to be on the road at 3am. The charge here was that she left the scene. I don’t know what drove that decision – USUALLY there is something else going on – drunk – no license – no insurance – outstanding warrants – or just “scared.” In this case, a very sweet young man was left alone to die in the rain…
Contrary to your thought, this motorist’s “life” isn’t “ruined.” She did 30 days in jail- she’s out – she has served her debt to society. She can go on, live her life, get her degree, get married, have kids, and live a long life as a productive member of society – I don’t know how she will handle the “mental” part of knowing she killed that young man and left him to die… that’s for her to figure out. The “ruined” lives here belong to the family of Jeff Stevenson…
After seeing Amber’s picture, I realize I know this woman from a bar I sold food service supplies to. She is probably still tending bar in the general area where this happened as she has for a very long time. I ride, don’t drink and am semi-militant rider. I try to be a good person as much as possible, but if I happen to see her, I probably will verbalize some guilty thoughts her way. She deserves all the PTSD she gets!