An Aurora man who threw a rake at a Jeep for speeding will spend three years in prison after a 16-year-old passenger was paralyzed in the incident.
Kenneth Duane Schlager, 61, was sentenced Thursday for the Nov. 1 road rage case that investigators describe as "unusual."
Schlager was raking leaves in his front yard in the 2200 block of Fulton Street when he yelled at a passing Jeep to slow down.
The driver, 21-year-old Marcus Segura, was in the vehicle with his then 16-year-old sister Lexi Galvan.
After Schlager yelled, Segura turned around and drove back to Schlager to confront him.
Lexi, who is now recovering at home, said she asked her brother not to turn around and take her home.
"I just look up and this crazy old guy is in the middle of the street with a rake," Lexi said. "Then, I woke up in the back, mangled."
Investigators confirm Schlager stood in the street with his rake. The Jeep swerved to avoid him and, according to witnesses, Schlager swung the rake "like a baseball bat," letting it go before it hit the Jeep and shattered the windshield.
"They said that he picked up another rake and continued his yard work," Lexi said, "[He] didn't call 911 or anything."
The Jeep then struck a parked car and rolled, leaving Lexi paralyzed.
More than one year later, recovery is slow but steady. The teenager said she's focused on moving past the incident. Her family is proud of her strength and optimism.
"The goal is to get her stronger so she can do more," Lexi's father Daniel Galvan said.
"I want her to be able to drive someday," Daniel said. "I want her experience everything a 17-year-old should experience."
He called this a senseless crash that could have easily been prevented.
"In the end, my daughter had to pay for that. She was innocent the whole time," Daniel said.
The speed limit for the street was 25 mph. Police say the Jeep was traveling at 36 mph before the crash.
Schlager was convicted in November of felony criminal mischief and three counts of misdemeanor reckless endangerment.
Segura was cited for speeding.
