Prosecutor, family object to no prison for driver who was street racing when he killed man in Syracuse

Syracuse, N.Y. – A judge’s decision to sentence a 19-year-old driver who hit and killed a man while street racing in downtown Syracuse to no time in prison shocked the victim’s family.
Joshua Shultes was sentenced to five years probation after he accepted Judge Ted Limpert’s deal to plead guilty.
Prosecutors objected to the sentence, instead calling for the man to get at least three to nine years in prison.
Shultes, 19, was driving his 2022 Nissan Altima on April 15 when he hit Jermaine Sterling, 46, at the intersection of Erie Boulevard East onto Catherine Street shortly after midnight. Sterling later died from his injuries.
Shultes was driving over 70 mph and ran two red lights while racing a stranger that night, prosecutor Frank Pelosi told Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard.
Pelosi said that he was shocked by the judge’s offer of probation. He said he was frustrated but acknowledged that judges have the authority to go over prosecutor’s heads.
“There’s nothing I could do,” Pelosi said. “That’s the law, and I accept it. I don’t agree with it.”
Pelosi said that in over a decade as a fatal crash prosecutor, he has never seen such a lenient sentence.
“They always get some sort of jail time,” he said. “I’ve never seen one just say it is straight probation.”
Pelosi said that he had offered Shultes an indeterminant sentence of three to nine years if he were to plead guilty to the manslaughter charge. He said that he feels if someone loses their life, there should always be jail time.
When Limpert offered Shultes the sentence that did not require jail time, he cited Shultes’ cooperation on scene and lack of intoxication the night of the crash.
“I was stunned,” Pelosi said.
Pelosi said that Shultes actions after the crash do not erase the reckless choices that led to Sterling’s death. Pelosi pointed out the driver Shultes was racing through downtown stopped at the red lights while Shultes blew through them. He also pointed to Shultes’ choice to drive around 40 mph over the speed limit.
“At his age, you know the difference between right and wrong, and that was completely wrong,” Pelosi said. “You chose to play Russian roulette with his life.”
At the sentencing, Shultes agreed that what he did was wrong. He quietly addressed the court and choked up as he told the judge he expected to receive 15 years in prison for his actions. He said his heart dropped when the judge offered a probation sentence.
“I fully agree,” Shultes said. “I don’t deserve it.”
He said that he would live with this nightmare for the rest of his life but understands it is nothing compared to the pain Sterling’s family will suffer. He said that he believes this offer from the judge is an opportunity for him to change and prevent others from making the mistakes he did.
Shultes was choked up throughout the appearance but never apologized to the family.
Pelosi said that Sterling was doing everything right to stay safe that night. He was on an electric bike and waited for the light before turning in the intersection where he was hit. He said that in the video that captured the crash, Shultes is seen trying to avoid the crash but it was too late.
Sterling’s daughter and her mother were outraged when Pelosi informed them of the plea agreement, he said.
On Wednesday, Sterlings’ ex-wife, Jacquelyn Fletcher, and his daughter, Precious Sterling, addressed the judge at Shultes’ sentencing.
Fletcher told Limpert that while Shultes would walk away with a slap on the wrist, her daughter will feel the loss of her father for the rest of her life.
Fletcher said that she saw the video that captured the deadly crash. She said that Sterling flew into the air after he was hit by the speeding car.
After the sentencing, Fletcher told Syracuse.com | The Post Standard that she had to go with her daughter to identify Sterling’s body after the crash and his injuries were gruesome.
“That wasn’t my dad,” Precious Sterling said. “He destroyed my dad.”
Precious Sterling also addressed the judge at the sentencing. She told Limpert that her father died just a month after her 18th birthday. She said her first “big girl decision” was to pick out her father’s casket.
She said that she will miss her father’s support. Fletcher said that her daughter will never have a chance to have her father walk her down the aisle or celebrate any other milestones.
Precious Sterling told Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard she feels like she let her father down by being unable to sway the judge’s decision. She will miss the opportunity to make her father proud as an adult, she said.
Precious said that she has not let herself fully grieve. As Sterling’s only child and only living relative, she feels like she is facing her grief alone.
Fletcher and her daughter said that the probation sentence makes them feel like no one was considering Sterling and the loss of his life.
Before issuing the probation sentence, Limpert told the court that he understood the women’s and the prosecution’s objections to his decision, but he does not share their opinion.
He said that no sentence would satisfy them or bring Sterling back. He said Shultes actions after the crash, as well as his expression of remorse, made Limpert feel that a probation sentence was appropriate.
He warned Shultes that if he was unsuccessful on probation, he would likely face a prison sentence.
“Your reckless behavior cost a family a loved one, a loss they will suffer for the rest of their lives,” Limpert said. “I know that you are going to live with this for the rest of your life.”
Staff writer Anne Hayes covers breaking news, crime and public safety. Have a tip, a story idea, a question or a comment? You can reach her at [email protected].