Motorcyclist’s killer sentenced to prison

The mother of a motorcyclist dragged and killed on the H-1 freeway last year was in state court Tuesday, giving her forgiveness to the woman who ran him over.

Chantel Andrade, 40, however, was sentenced by a state judge to a maximum 10-year-prison term for leaving the scene of the fatal accident that took the life of Keith Jantoc.

“I just wish you would have stopped and helped him like you would want me to do if I did this to your child,” Sharon Jantoc told Andrade, who didn’t stop or even slow down after hitting Jantoc on April 15.

Instead, she continued driving, dragging his motorcycle under her sport utility vehicle for nearly a half-mile just east of the Kunia onramp. She later abandoned the SUV in a Pearl City parking lot. Police found the vehicle with front-end damage and motorcycle parts stuck in its grille.

Keith Jantoc, 25, died from blunt force injuries to his head, neck and torso. He was wearing a helmet.

Andrade in November pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of a fatal accident and to driving without a valid driver’s license.

She apologized Tuesday, telling Sharon Jantoc, “I thank you for forgiving me because I haven’t forgiven myself yet.”

Circuit Judge Dean Ochiai told Andrade that her words of apology rang hollow based on her recent actions. He was scheduled to sentence Andrade in January but postponed the sentencing to allow her to complete a residential substance abuse treatment program.

Ochiai moved up the sentencing to Tuesday because Andrade was kicked out of the residential treatment program. “I would have given you a much (lower) sentence” if the program had been completed, he told her.

Deputy Prosecutor Wayne Tashima told Ochiai that Andrade admitted that she smoked marijuana and drank alcohol daily and had smoked methampheta-mine just hours before hitting Jantoc.

He said Andrade initially told police she was at home at the time of the crash, got her landlord to unknowingly lie for her and tried to blame the crash on her boyfriend. Tashima said Andrade later admitted to police that she lied, accused Jantoc of road rage, said she couldn’t stop in time when Jantoc cut in front of her, didn’t know the motorcycle was caught under her SUV, and continued driving because her boyfriend, who was a passenger, told her not to stop.

Tashima said the boyfriend told police Andrade ignored his pleas for her to stop and call police. He said another passenger told police that after entering the freeway at the Kunia onramp, Andrade started driving at a speed that scared her. Using data retrieved from the SUV’s “black box,” Tashima said, Honolulu police calculated that the vehicle was traveling 88-91 mph five seconds before impact.

“This means the defendant drove the distance of a football field, including end zones, before hitting Keith,” he said.

Donovan Odo, Andrade’s lawyer, told Ochiai that both Andrade and Jantoc were driving erratically and irresponsibly. He said witnesses saw Jantoc cross over three lanes of traffic before the crash.