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Former state trooper and former Buckhannon Mayor Anthony James Scott was sentenced Thursday to 20 years, with 10 to serve in prison, for the crash that killed two teenagers and seriously injured two others a decade ago.
Former Buckhannon Mayor sentencing
Scott learned his fate in a Carroll County courtroom where families of the victims — and Scott’s own family — spoke through tears about the crash and its aftermath. Judge Erica Tisinger followed the Department of Community Services’ recommended sentence for homicide by vehicle and serious injury by vehicle.
The sentencing came on the 10th anniversary of Chinchilla’s funeral. During victim impact statements, Chinchilla’s mother spoke through tears about the pain of losing her daughter.
“You took it away. Now. One time have you ever apologized? Not that that would matter now,” she said. “It’s been living through hell the last ten years. It’s a lose-lose for everyone involved.”
Scott’s family also addressed the court, saying the tragedy has deeply affected both families.
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“It has been ten years for a long time,” said Kylie Lindsey’s mother, Kellie Lindsey, who marked the day as the 10th anniversary of her daughter’s burial. “A.J. Scott, what were you doing 10 years ago today?”
Isabella Chinchilla’s mother, Leslie Woods, told the court, “She had goals, she had dreams, you took it away.”
Some sought justice, while others asked for mercy. Scott’s mother, Robin Scott, said, “All my son did was went over the speed limit. The verdict came back different.”
Wall, one of the survivors, told the court, “I got victim blamed for 10 years. I cry every night. I was 18.”
Defense attorney Mac Pilgrim said multiple plea deals were offered over the years but rejected by Scott, who “wishes he could have died that night” yet did not believe he bore the only blame. “Mr. Scott would have been happy to take a plea if the state chose to charge Mr. Wall and that was his sticking point,” Pilgrim said.
Former GSP trooper convicted
Scott, a former Georgia State Patrol trooper, was convicted in August on multiple charges, including vehicular homicide and serious injury by vehicle, in the deadly 2013 wreck on Highway 27. Prosecutors said he was speeding without lights or sirens when he crashed into 17-year-old Isabella Chinchilla, killing her and seriously injuring Dylan Wall and Ben Franklin.
Scott testified that he was not on a dispatch call when the crash happened, and he admitted that his lights and sirens were not active. Under cross-examination, he acknowledged he was traveling “close to 90 miles per hour” in a 55 mph zone. Scott also said his portable radio was dead, so he left it with another officer to charge and relied on his in-car radio that night.
Prosecutors in the retrial argued Scott drove 90 mph without lights or sirens before striking a car carrying four teenagers. The first prosecution ended in a mistrial after defense attorneys claimed prosecutors did not turn over evidence related to a victim’s seating position.
The Georgia Supreme Court denied appeals, clearing the way for him to be retried on vehicular homicide charges.
After the 2015 crash, Scott was fired from the Georgia State Patrol, as investigators found he exceeded the 55 mph limit by as much as 35 mph, was not responding to an emergency, and had no lights or sirens active.
