The 20-year-old Bloom Center man who shot and killed a 16-year-old Jackson Center teen during an underage drinking party was sentenced to five years in prison.
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Branden Doseck is shown in his baseball uniform on a button his mother wore into court on Monday. (EXAMINER PHOTO | REUBEN MEES)
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Evan John Hoffman appeared Monday before Logan County Common Pleas Judge Mark S. O’Connor to face charges of reckless homicide with a gun specification and unlawful sexual conduct with a minor.
He has admitted to firing the shot that killed Branden Doseck after a Dec. 26-27 underage drinking party Mr. Hoffman hosted at his 6089 County Road 21 home in the unincorporated village of Bloom Center.
He has also admitted supplying alcohol for various parties at his home and on at least one prior occasion having sex with a 15-year-old girl. As part of the sentence for that admission, he will be labeled a Tier II sex offender and be required to register his address with authorities for the next 25 years.
Amy and Bob Ward said they won’t get their son back, but closing this chapter allows them to move on with their lives and the healing.
“We didn’t want to put the kids through a trial and we are having such a tough time dealing with this ourselves,” Mr. Ward said after the hearing. “With the gun laws the way they are, we don’t know what would have happened at a trial.”
The Logan County Prosecutor’s Office consulted the family prior to making the plea deal that cut a possible 10 years from the maximum sentence and the family agreed with the deal to find closure.
“It’s been really hard to deal with and everyone is trying to manage the best we can. We came to the decision that we don’t have to keep dragging this out; we can find a way to heal,” the stepfather said.
“Whether it’s five years or 50 years, it’s not enough. A life sentence isn’t enough; it won’t bring (Branden) back.”
Amy and Bob Ward of Jackson Center, parents of the 16-year-old victim Branden Doseck, listen as Judge Mark S. O’Connor hands down a five year prison sentence for Branden’s killer on Monday. (EXAMINER PHOTOS | REUBEN MEES)
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Evan Hoffman, left, and his attorney Ed Dougherty prepare for Monday’s sentencing hearing in which the 20-year-old Bloom Center man got five years in prison for killing a 16-year-old boy at an underage drinking party and having sex with an underage girl. |
Mrs. Ward said she plans to crusade to get stiffer penalties for those who provide alcohol to teens or host underage drinking parties.
“I believe the law needs to be changed … the penalty should be stiffer,” the mother said. “I will be fighting for that.”
During a hearing in Bellefontaine Municipal Court last week, Judge Ann E. Beck, who imposed an original six-month sentence after the defendant pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor furnishing alcohol charges just days after his arrest, added six more months of local jail time and stiffed the financial penalty.
His prison sentence won’t begin until February when he completes that sentence, Judge O’Connor said.
Municipal court records also show a total of $4,900 in fines and court costs in that case.
Judge O’Connor also left the issue of restitution for the cost of Branden’s funeral open for consideration in the common pleas case.
Other hearings
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HADDOX |
In other recent court activity, the man who admitted to severely beating his 7-year-old son for not eating a dinner of liver and onions was located and will be headed to prison for two years.
Steven Haddox, 31, of Celina, failed to appear for a June sentencing hearing after pleading guilty to a felony endangering children charge. He was recently arrested on a warrant and sentenced Friday, court personnel report.
He admitted to spanking the boy with a wood paddle covered with black tape every five minutes, beginning with one strike and adding an additional strike each time he resumed the punishment. When he reached seven strikes, he kept going, hitting the boy 10 times. He also reportedly struck him across the face with his hand on two occasions.
The abuse did not come out until Bellefontaine City Schools staff noticed signs and officers of the Bellefontaine Police Department began investigating.
Read complete COMMON PLEAS COURT NEWS in Tuesday’s Examiner.
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