Thornton man to serve 50 years in 2018 crash that killed two-year-old’s parents

Courtesy of 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office

Festus Poyner and Julee Davis, both 32, were killed in a May 20, 2018 crash.

A Thornton man who killed two people in a car crash while speeding in a stolen truck will serve 50 years in prison, a Douglas County judge ruled Thursday.

A jury convicted Skylar Pagano, 28, on a total of 17 counts in December including vehicular homicide – driving under the influence, first-degree assault, reckless child abuse and vehicular assault, according to an 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office news release.

Speeding in a stolen Ford F150 southbound on Colorado 83 on May 20, 2018, Pagano moved to pass in a curved, no-passing zone, the news release said. He hit a Toyota RAV4 head-on.

The driver and passenger of the Toyota, Festus Poyner and Julee Davis, both 32, were killed, the release stated. Their 2-year-old son, who was in the back seat, survived, though he suffered serious injuries. Pagano and his passenger were seriously injured as well.

Pagano told investigators he had been high on methamphetamine during the crash, Migoya said. At the time he was on felony probation and out of jail on bond awaiting sentencing in another felony. He had pleaded guilty to driving under the influence five months earlier.

“Selfish is not a big enough word for what this killer did. He took the lives of a 2-year-old boy’s parents. He shattered the little boy’s body and the lives of his grandparents and extended family,” District Attorney George Brauchler said in the release.