Rodney Rivers will spend the next 12½ to 38 years in state prison after pleading guilty to vehicular homicide and other charges related to a Feb. 9 fatal crash in Cass Township.
Rivers agreed to a negotiated plea deal on Tuesday afternoon at Schuylkill County Courthouse before Judge Christina Hale.
He was the driver who eluded Minersville Police on the night of Feb. 9, leaving the borough on Route 901, passing two vehicles illegally before crashing head-on into a vehicle driven by 65-year-old Elizabeth Ryan, of Pottsville. Ryan died in the crash. On board with Ryan at the time of the incident were two of her grandchildren, one of whom has since been confined to a wheelchair.
In order to reach the terms of the sentence, the Schuylkill County District Attorney’s Office added enhancements to the recommended sentencing guidelines for the crimes Rivers was charged with committing.
The enhancements were added on due to the nature of the crimes and Rivers’ prior record.
Rivers ultimately entered guilty pleas on the following charges:
- Vehicular homicide
- Accidents involving death or injury while driving on a DUI suspended license
- Two counts of aggravated assault by vehicle, one for each of the juvenile victims of that crash
- Driving with a DUI-suspended license
In court on Tuesday, Ryan’s family had a chance to address Rivers and express the pain they continue to feel months later and expect to feel for the rest of their lives. There wasn’t a dry eye in the courtroom as several of her family members took the stand to address the defendant.
Chrissy Matz, Ryan’s oldest daughter, said, “It wasn’t her time to go. She was retired and living her best life. You had no right to make the decision that ended my mom’s life.
“Her death has destroyed us in ways we still can’t comprehend,” Matz said. “You catapulted us into a never-ending nightmare.”
Another of Ryan’s daughters, Sara Snider, said, “The foundation of my existence was ripped out from underneath me. The choices you made that night, Mr. Rivers, sent my life into a deafening silence.”
Mike Buchanan, a son of Ryan, took the harshest tone with Rivers directly in court on Tuesday.
“We all try to be forgiving but in this situation, I can’t do it,” he said. “I hope you die a slow, painful death. If there is a Hell, I hope you rot in it forever.”
John Ryan, the father of Laykin Ryan, who is now confined to a wheelchair on account of the injuries she sustained in the crash, said, “We are trying to adapt to a new normal but the road ahead is long and challenging. I do hope your time in prison is not enjoyable.”
District Attorney Mike O’Pake described Rivers’ actions back in February as “unnecessary and senseless” in court on Tuesday.
“Elizabeth Ryan is dead. Laykin Ryan may never walk again. Kaiden Holmes will suffer every single day the rest of his life … All because Mr. Rivers chose to drive that day,” O’Pake said.
O’Pake said he wished he could have recommended a harsher sentence but is bound by state sentencing guidelines for these crimes.
Hale agreed in handing down Rivers’ sentence.
“Mr. Rivers, you devastated this family,” she said. “No sentence can bring back Elizabeth Ryan. You victimized two young children. You ruined that kid’s life.”
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