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CORRECTION: Suspects In Alleged Sand Canyon Fatal Crash Sentenced

The report corrects the sentence for Thomas Vensko, which was incorrect due to a source error in the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

Two men pleaded no contest and received sentences Thursday in a fatal crash that killed Dakota Demott the night of Jan. 10, 2012.


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Colt Doherty, who was driving the car Demott was in, received six years in state prison, and Thomas Vensko, the man he was accused of racing, received a suspended sentence of four years, and five years of formal probation. He was ordered to serve 180 days in a Los Angeles County jail.

Both pleaded guilty to one count of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, according to District Attorney’s Office Spokesman Greg Risling.

On the night of Jan. 10, 2012, Demott and Doherty were traveling in a Ford Mustang at a high rate of speed on Sand Canyon Road, according to officials.

When Doherty entered a curve, he lost control of the car and collided with a large oak tree, the impact of which ejected Demott from the vehicle and threw him into a fence. Demott was declared dead at the scene.

Doherty allegedly was under the influence at the time of the crash.

Doherty has been in jail since Aug. 8, 2012, in lieu of more than $1 million bail, according to Sheriff’s Department arrest records. Vensko had his bail reduced to $100,000 at a hearing in November 2012. He posted it and he was not in custody while awaiting Thursday’s hearing.

Related: Defendant Posts Bail In Fatal Sand Canyon Crash

Witnesses had told deputies that there were other vehicles involved in the crash. Vensko was arrested because he was racing Doherty before the crash occurred, according to traffic investigator Deputy Mike Shapiro, at the time of the crash.

“Even though he didn’t cause the death directly, because he was street racing, he faces the same penalty as the driver,” Shapiro explained.

Vensko had two passengers in the car with him, but they are not being charged.

The family filed a lawsuit against the city of Santa Clarita as a result of the crash.

Related: Santa Clarita Named In Wrongful Death Suit Over Alleged Street Racing

From a previous story:

“The parties (in the lawsuit) have submitted a stipulation requesting that the matter be stayed until after the criminal proceedings,” said Joe Montes, city attorney for Santa Clarita, when questioned about the lawsuit in October. “Right now, it’s difficult for the parties to complete discovery when there are criminal proceedings ongoing.”

Montes referred an inquiry as to the damages sought by the plaintiffs to the plaintiff’s attorneys, the law firm Owen, Patterson & Owen, which is representing the Demott family in the wrongful death lawsuit.

Attorneys for the firm did not immediately respond to a request for that information.

 


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CORRECTION: Suspects In Alleged Sand Canyon Fatal Crash Sentenced

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About Perry Smith

Perry Smith is a print and broadcast journalist who has won several awards for his focused, hyperlocal community coverage in several different regions of the country. In addition to five years of experience covering the Santa Clarita Valley, Smith, a San Fernando Valley native, has worked in newspapers and news websites in Los Angeles, the Northwest, the Central Valley and the South, before coming to KHTS in 2012. To contact Smith, email him at Perry@hometownstation.com.