Matthew Gene Wagoner

WARSAW — It was an incredibly emotional day in Kosciusko Superior Court III today as presiding Judge Joe Sutton passed down the sentence of Matthew Gene Wagoner, 30, formerly of North Webster.

Wagoner faced numerous charges in relation to a crash Sunday, July 20, 2014, that claimed the life of a Pennsylvania man and left six individuals, including Wagoner himself, injured. Wagoner was the driver of a pickup truck that struck a minivan driven by Jeremy Valentine, Wynnewood, Pa., on SR 13 in North Webster. Jeremy Valentine was killed in the accident from blunt force impact and his wife, Seana Valentine, 38, was in “extremely critical” condition. The Valentine’s two children, Molly, 9, and Luke, 7, were taken to Lutheran Hospital by air ambulance.

In addition to the Valentine family, Wagoner’s own children, Tyson, 2, and Matthew, 5, were taken to Parkview Regional Medical Center for injuries. Wagoner himself was classified in critical condition.

Wagoner, represented by counsel Mark E. Caruso, waived his initial hearing and filed a plea bargain. Wagoner pleaded guilty to neglect of a dependent resulting in serious bodily injury, a level 3 felony; causing death of another person when operating a motor vehicle under the influence of a controlled substance, a level 4 felony; and three counts of causing serious bodily injury when operating a motor vehicle under a controlled substance, all level six felony charges.

Wagoner received a total of 18 years in the Indiana Department of Corrections. The sentence for neglect of a dependent, resulting in serious bodily injury, was five years with two years suspended. He was given 10 years for the charge of causing death of another person, two years on one count of causing serious bodily injury and 1 1/2 years each on the remaining two charges of causing serious bodily injury. He will also participate in the DOC’s therapeutic program. The suspended sentence will be served at the end.

Before passing down Wagoner’s sentence, Judge Sutton offered both the defense and Prosecutor Christanne Hampton the opportunity to address the court. Hampton first read the court a letter written by a cousin of Jeremy Valentine.

Valentine’s cousin noted Jeremy wanted to make the world a better place and “was there for others no matter what.”

“I no longer have the ability to sit down and talk with him. His wife doesn’t have a husband … his kids don’t have a father,” read Hampton.

Valentine’s cousin described Wagoner as ignorant, uncaring, selfish and cruel noting he would not admit to doing something wrong and had very little regard for others, let alone his own children. She went on to express her disappointment and anger that Wagoner had not learned from his past mistakes with methamphetamine and as a result, caused the death of her cousin.

Upon the conclusion of reading the letter, Hampton expressed her own personal feelings on the situation noting when she first learned of the incident, it brought tears to her eyes. She too noted Wagoner’s past, stating he had admitted to drug problems in 2006, stating he wanted to change to the court, again in 2008 after crashing his vehicle while under the influence with his son Matthew in the car.

“Wagoner keeps saying, ‘I’m sorry, but it was an accident.’ This was no less an accident than firing a gun into a crowd of people,” stated Hampton.

Both Wagoner and his attorney addressed the court as well. Caruso noted he had known the Wagoner family for years and had seen the devastation caused to both families firsthand. Caruso stated Wagoner was not high the day of the accident, instead due to daily use of meth for weeks prior to the event, his body showed high levels. Caruso stated Wagoner, who was reportedly working seven days a week, became tired and dozed off.

Caruso also noted the reason Wagoner refused a breath test at the scene of the accident was because he was being loaded into a helicopter for treatment.

In his address to the court, Wagoner stated, “I don’t know if anyone knows what it is like to deal with addiction. It is like a disease. You do it, you don’t want to do it, but you do it again. I tried to stop — I looked for help. The first thing I saw after the accident was Jeremy and I thought, why you? Why not me? I wish it was me. I was taking my kids swimming that day … I still remember the little girl (Molly Valentine) screaming for her brother. It is an image I will have to live with for the rest of my life.

“I can’t take it back, I wish I could. When it comes down to it, I’m sorry. I’m not trying to get out of trouble — I just don’t want to miss out on my kids.”