SANDPOINT, Idaho. – Over 500 days after she was hit and killed by a reckless driver while walking home with her younger brother and grandmother, three-year-old Scarlett Jensen’s killer was sentenced to ten years in prison late Tuesday morning.
“We’re honoring Scarlett by fighting for justice for her, and I feel like we got that in some form today,” Samantha Jensen, Scarlett’s mom, said.
Almost a year and a half after their beautiful daughter, granddaughter and big sister was senselessly taken from this world, the man who was driving the car that killed young Scarlett Jensen in October 2022 was sentenced to prison.
“October 7, 2022, is the day my entire world was destroyed. I stood in the pediatric ICU with my two-year-old who was fighting for his life while I mourned the death of my precious 3-year-old Scarlett.”
We first brought you Scarlett’s story on October 12, 2022, as a makeshift memorial stood on the roadway near her home, not far from the location on a private backroad where defendant Dakota LaFountain hit and killed the toddler. Scarlett died on scene, while her younger brother, Henry, suffered major injuries, but thankfully survived. The children’s grandmother also survived being hit by LaFountain.
In 2022, NonStop Local’s Ava Wainhouse was the only reporter to speak with Scarlett’s family – and this Tuesday, Wainhouse was the only reporter in the courtroom, hearing victim impact statements read by multiple family members of Scarlett.
For the first time since her daughter was senselessly taken from this world, Samantha Jensen was able to speak to Scarlett’s killer directly.
“You didn’t know my Scarlett, so you can’t possibly understand how much darker the world is without her. Please let me tell you about my little girl, the little girl that this person killed,” Jensen said. “Scarlett loved unicorns, the color pink, anything sparkly, and above all else she loved being a big sister. I will never get to see her on her first day of kindergarten, or see her with a cap and gown, see her walk down the aisle, see her hold her first baby or see her grow old.”
We now know the defendant, LaFountain had been diagnosed with a mental illness. He allegedly was having an episode when he hit and killed Scarlett. Lafountain’s attorney asked the judge to grant probation instead of imprisonment, arguing the young man would not harm again if he was taking his meds.
On the other hand, prosecution argued LaFountain’s actions were so negligent, so harmful, that the best form of justice would be the maximum sentence of ten years in prison. The judge ultimately sided with prosecution; LaFountain will now begin his ten-year sentence, with credit for time served of 537 days.
“You will still be far younger than I when you get out of prison, you’ll still have the opportunity to change your life,” Judge Lamont Berecz said.
After he was sentenced, LaFountain walked out of the courtroom, while photos of Scarlett were taken down and her family gathered outside the Bonner County Courthouse.
“This is the most justice we could have hoped for at this point,” Jensen said.
In her mother’s eyes, Tuesday’s outcome in court was another step closer in finding justice for her little girl, knowing that Scarlett’s killer will stay behind bars.
“He’s at least going to be going away for a while and hopefully he has some time to reflect on what he did, see her face in his mind every day, and think about what he did to my family,” Jensen said.
Scarlett’s family wishes the maximum sentence would be more than ten years, but they said they are still incredibly grateful for the judge’s decision.
