Driver in Fatal Crash Gets 8 Years

Once, twice the Canyon Country teenager was sternly warned that he was driving too dangerously, too fast.

But two speeding tickets and a stint in traffic school did not stop Marcus Christian Lellan from again flooring the accelerator on Feb. 17. This time, at more than 100 mph, he lost control of his vehicle and it slammed into an oncoming car. Four people, including three high school classmates, were killed.

Calling the tragic Canyon Country crash “not an accident” but a “willful and deliberate” act, a judge on Wednesday sentenced the lanky 19-year-old senior to eight years in prison.

“Driving at that speed . . . shows he exhibited complete disregard for everybody else but himself,” Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Charles Peven said in a San Fernando courtroom packed with families and friends of the victims and Lellan. “I feel that Mr. Lellan, if not in prison, will be a danger to others.”

Lellan, who was 18 at the time of the February crash, looked pale and grave at the two-hour hearing. His attorney, James E. Blatt, argued for a two-year sentence, but Deputy Dist. Atty. David Jacobs, following the recommendation of the teenager’s probation report, asked for eight years.

With good behavior and time already served, according to Blatt, Lellan could be released in 3 1/2 years. He still faces possible deportation by the Immigration and Naturalization Service because he is not a U.S. citizen, having emigrated from Denmark in 1989.

At the hearing, relatives of the four victims tearfully implored the judge to give Lellan the maximum sentence of 10 1/2 years. In the end, the sentence seemed to satisfy most people, even victims’ families and Lellan’s attorney.

“The sentence he was given was appropriate,” said Jannine Nickpee, niece of Rodney David Adams, the 45-year-old driver of the oncoming car, who was killed. “It’s going to take about that long to heal.”

Alice Renolds, mother of two brothers killed in the crash, said the sentence “will hopefully send a message to other teens that there are consequences for what happened.”

In April, Lellan pleaded guilty to four counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and reckless driving.

On the night of the accident, Lellan tried to pass cars on Soledad Canyon Road on a bicycle lane on the right, then swerved left and lost control. He crashed into the center median and his car flipped, landing on top of a car driven by Adams.

Adams, a letter carrier who lived in Santa Clarita, was killed instantly. Three of Lellan’s passengers--Dominic Whit Ianozzi, 17, and brothers Timothy Lee Renolds, 18, and Daniel Richard Renolds, 15--also died at the scene. A fourth passenger, 16-year-old Daniel Weber, suffered minor injuries. All the teenagers, including Lellan, were students at Canyon High School.

Lellan had a reputation and a record for driving fast and recklessly, according to court documents.

In October he was cited for driving 67 mph in a 50-mph zone, and in January he was cited for going 64 mph in a 40-mph zone, the records show. On both occasions, he was ticketed on Soledad Canyon Road.

“It puts you on notice that your behavior is unsafe,” said Jacobs, the prosecutor. “Mr. Lellan chose not to heed those warning signs.”

Moments before the crash, passengers in Lellan’s car screamed for the teen to slow down, according to court documents, but he ignored them. Skid marks showed his car was traveling 103 mph when Lellan lost control.

After the crash, Lellan tested positive for marijuana, and a pipe was found at the scene. The teen admitted he had smoked marijuana at noon that day.

But because Lellan voluntarily conceded wrongdoing and had no criminal record, his probation report, which also noted that the teenager “appears to be very remorseful,” recommended less than the maximum sentence.

By not contesting any charges, Lellan and his attorney were allowed to choose the sentencing judge under Superior Court policies. Naturally, defendants typically ask for the judge they believe would be the most lenient.

But Peven said if he did not impose a meaningful prison sentence, there could be a “strong likelihood” that the teenager could think: “I got away with another one.”

“I feel the defendant has engaged in violent conduct,” Peven said.

At the hearing, the Renolds family stood together and spoke about their pain of losing the two boys. Danny would have turned 16 today, and Tim already would have graduated from high school.

“They were not only brothers but best friends. They shared many things together. Now they share a headstone on their grave,” Alice Renolds said. “No one can imagine the pain of choosing two cemetery plots, two caskets.”

Anthony Ianozzi, the father of Dominic, said he could find “no words to explain the extent of our grief and pain.”

Neither Lellan nor his family spoke at the hearing. But afterward, the teenager’s mother, Gitte Lellan, said softly: “There is nothing we can say other than to beg for forgiveness.”