A Vancouver man has been sentenced to nearly 12 years in prison for causing a series of crashes on Interstate 205 that led to a man’s death.
Clark County Superior Court Judge Scott Collier handed down the sentence Monday in Joshua C. Frahm’s vehicular homicide case. Frahm, 30, was found guilty of the charge following a two-week jury trial last month. He was additionally convicted of vehicular assault, hit-and-run, false reporting and first-degree conspiracy to commit perjury.
The jury deliberated for about five hours before finding him guilty on all counts. Jurors also found that he had been driving under the influence and recklessly.
Frahm was driving a full-size pickup north on Interstate 205 near Burton Road just before 6 a.m. Dec. 7, 2014, when he rear-ended a northbound SUV driven by Steven M. Klase of Battle Ground. He did not stop or report the collision.
The impact launched the small SUV across all northbound lanes, where it crashed into the highway’s median and came to rest in the left northbound lane.
Another northbound motorist, Richard G. Irvine, 63, of Camas, saw the collision and stopped to help. He parked on the right shoulder, ran to the SUV and called 911. While Irvine was on the phone with dispatchers, a northbound minivan driven by Fredy Delacruz-Moreno of Portland struck the passenger side of the SUV and pushed it into Irvine.
Irvine suffered serious injuries and later died. Klase suffered a broken leg and fractured spine.
According to the prosecution, Frahm had been out drinking the night before and morning of the crashes. Multiple witnesses reported seeing the pickup being driven erratically on state Highway 14 and I-205 before the hit-and-run crash.
Senior Deputy Prosecutor Kasey Vu argued during trial that Frahm’s driving caused Irvine’s death, because his actions set the chain of events in motion.
Frahm’s defense attorney, Jeff Barrar, argued that it was Delacruz-Moreno’s negligence that caused Irvine’s death.
Frahm faced a sentencing range of 111 to 147 months in prison.
Vu recommended that Frahm serve the high end of the range. He said in an interview Tuesday that Frahm’s “lack of awareness and contrition, and his continued efforts to manipulate the system” warranted the lengthy sentence.
“He just doesn’t get it. He did everything to thwart the process,” Vu said.
Frahm has a history of vehicle-related crimes, including driving with a suspended license, driving without a valid operator’s license, driving without a license on his person and negligent driving.
Coincidentally, he was arrested and charged with DUI, a year to the day before the hit-and-run crash, but he later pleaded to negligent driving. Vu said Frahm was ordered to undergo a substance abuse evaluation and treatment in that case, but he never complied with the court’s orders.
“There’s a pattern of him playing the system,” he said. “That theme was prevalent throughout this case and trial. It goes to show, every time he got into trouble he tried to weasel his way out.”
During sentencing, Frahm apologized to everyone who was injured.
Neither Klase nor Irvine’s widow, Debbie, attended the hearing, Vu said. They didn’t want to be reminded of what happened, he said, and didn’t feel comfortable attending.
Frahm’s driver’s license will be revoked. Collier also ordered that he serve 18 months’ community custody and not have contact with Klase or Irvine’s family for 50 years. He was given credit for 537 days in custody, court records show.
The prosecution is requesting that Frahm pay more than $288,000 in restitution, but the exact amount will be set at a later date.
Efforts to reach Barrar on Tuesday were unsuccessful.
