Preview
DOCKET NO: KNL-CV-17-6031260-S SUPERIOR COURT
JOHNY SANTIAGO AND
JAIME SANTIAGO JD OF NEW LONDON
Vv NEW LONDON
JONATHAN BALBI;
HIGH PRESSURE TECHNOLOGIES, LLC AND
CERTIFIED CYLINDER TESTING, INC. LLC JUNE 25, 2019
PLAINTIFE’S MOTION FOR ORDER PURSUANT TO PRACTICE BOOK §43-9(6)
The plaintiffs, Johny Santiago and Jaime Santiago, hereby move for an order from the
Court authorizing the disclosure of the presentence investigation report in the matter of State v.
Jon: athan Balbi, Superior Court, G.A. #20 Docket No. S20N-MV15-0469884-S. Connecticut
Practice Book Sec 43-9(6) provides that upon a showing to the Court where a matter is pending,
the presentence investigation report shall be made available in any judicial proceeding where the
report is determined to be relevant to that proceeding.
In this civil action, the plaintiff Johny Santiago, has alleged that the defendant, Jonathan
Balbi, drove a motor vehicle into his lane of travel on September 16, 2015, striking his
motorcycle and causing him to crash, sustaining serious bodily injury. It is further alleged that
Balbi then fled the scene. It is undisputed that at the time of the accident Balbi was returning
from a delivery of helium to a customer in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The vehicle Balbi was
driving was owned by Hi Pressure Technologies Inc. However according to its discovery
responses in this action, Hi Pressure Tech had ceased commercial activities 9 months prior to the
1
Polito & Associates, LLC ¢ Attorneys at Law
567 Vauxhall Street Extension, Suite 230 ¢ Waterford ¢ Connecticut 06385
(860) 447-3300 ¢ Fax (860) 447-3389
accident and was effectively dissolved but for outstanding tax issues. Balbi claims that he had
“borrowed” the vehicle and was acting in a self-employed capacity on the date of this accident.
That statement however is contradicted by several others made by Balbi and his
criminal attorney shortly after the accident. As stated, Balbi initially fled the scene, however a
bystander was able to record his license plate and reported it to authorities. When contacted by
the Connecticut State Police Balbi initially denied even being in the State of Connecticut when
the accident occurred. Balbi stated to the Connecticut State Police that he owned “a company”
but that the accident must have been caused by one of his employees; a statement which
contradicts his assertion that he was acting in a self -employed capacity. Balbi later recanted
acknowledging that he had lied to the Connecticut State Police and that it was in fact he who was
operating the vehicle involved in the accident. Balbi was charged and convicted for fleeing the
scene of the accident as well as reckless endangerment and sentenced to prison by the Honorable
Alex Hernandez in the above mentioned criminal action. As part of that criminal action, a
presentencing report was generated which Balbi read during his sentencing, affirming it was
accurate minus three minor details. Exhibit A.
During the sentencing hearing for that criminal action, Balbi, through his attorney, stated
on the record that he was prepared to offer “substantial” “personal assets” to negotiate a
settlement with the plaintiff Johny Santiago. Exhibit A. He further alleged that he owned and
operated a company which employed 11 people. Id. He further indicated that he would again,
put “every financial asset he has on the table” for Mr. Santiago. Id. That never happened.
2
Polito & Associates, LLC ¢ Attorneys at Law
567 Vauxhall Street Extension, Suite 230 ¢ Waterford ¢ Connecticut 06385
(860) 447-3300 # Fax (860) 447-3389
Last week Mr. Balbi testified under oath however that he did not own a company at that
time and never has. He further testified that at the time of the accident, although he was driving
a vehicle owned by High Pressure Tech, he was not employed by them or working in any
capacity for them or any other entity when the accident happened. These statements directly
contradict those made in the criminal sentencing by his attorney and those that Balbi personally
made during a recorded statement to Progressive Insurance wherein he again stated that he was
the “Operations Manager” of the company and referred again to other employees involved in that
operation. Ex B.
The presentence investigation report would include details about Mr. Balbi’s employment
and financial situation at the time of the accident. Due to Mr. Balbi’s contradictory statements,
there are serious questions as to who Mr. Balbi was actually employed by on the date of the
accident and what the real status of his financial situation was, and is. The presentence
investigation report is therefore highly relevant to the credibility of statements made by Mr.
Balbi in the subject action as well.
3
Polito & Associates, LLC ¢ Attorneys at Law
567 Vauxhall Street Extension, Suite 230 ¢ Waterford ¢ Connecticut 06385
(860) 447-3300 # Fax (860) 447-3389
Wherefore, the plaintiffs respectfully request that the Court issue an Order permitting the
presentence investigation report in the matter of State v. Jonathan Balbi, Superior Court, G.A.
#20 Docket No. S20N-MV15-0469884-S, be disclosed to counsel in this matter.
THE PLAINTIFF
By
James M. Harrington, Esq.
Polito & Associates,
4
Polito & Associates, LLC # Attorneys at Law
567 Vauxhall Street Extension, Suite 230 # Waterford # Connecticut 06385
(860) 447-3300 # Fax (860) 447-3389
CERTIFICATION
Thereby certify that a copy of the foregoing was sent via electronic mail this 25" day of
June 2019 to the following counsel of record:
Lewis Lerman, Esquire — lerman@halloransage.com
Halloran Sage
315 Post Road West
Westport, CT 06880
Robert O. Hickey, Esquire — rohickey@ryandelucalaw.com
Ryan Ryan Deluca LLP
1000 Lafayette Boulevard Suite 800
Bridgeport, CT 06604
James M. Harrington, Esq.
Commissioner of Superior
5
Polito & Associates, LLC ¢ Attorneys at Law
567 Vauxhall Street Extension, Suite 230 ¢ Waterford ¢ Connecticut 06385
(860) 447-3300 # Fax (860) 447-3389
EXHIBIT A
S20N-MV15~-0469884-S SUPERIOR COURT
STATE OF CONNECTICUT G.A. #20
Vv AT NORWALK, CONNECTICUT
JONATHAN BALBI JULY 18, 2017
BEFORE THE HONORABLE ALEX HERNANDEZ, JUDGE
& A PPEARANCES
a
Representing the State of Connecticut:
ATTORNEY JUSTINA MOORE
Office of the State’s Attorney
17 Belden Avenue
Norwalk, CT 06850
Representing the Defendant:
ATTORNEY MAXWELL BARRAND
Discala & Discala
11 North Main Street
Norwalk, cT 06854
Recorded & Transcribed by:
Donna Bonenfant
Court Recording Monitor
17 Belden Avenue
Norwalk, CT 06850
THE COURT: Good afternoon, Attorney Moore.
ot,
ATTY. MOORE: Good afternoon, Your Honor.
THE COURT: Or good morning, sorry.
ATTY. MOORE: Good morning. The State calls
Jonathan Balbi.
THE COURT: Good morning Attorney Barrand.
ATTY. BARRAND: Good morning, Your Honor.
Maxwell Barrand for Mr. Balbi who is present at my
left.
10 THE COURT: Good morning, Mr. Balbi.
11 THE CLERK: 202, Your Honor.
12 ATTY. BARRAND: This matter is down for
13 entencing today, Your Honor. I did provide a memo
om
14 yesterday regarding sentencing and some efforts that
is we made in order to try to make things right with the
16 victim.
17 THE COURT: Yes. Thank you, counsel. I
18 received that. Take care of some housekeeping
19 matters first.
20 PSI was prepared. Attorney Barrand, have you an
21 opportunity to review the PSI?
22 ATTY. BARRAND: I have, Your Honor.
23 THE COURT: And do you have any changes,
24 corrections to the PSI?
25 ATTY. BARRAND: I do not, Your Honor.
oo
26 THE COURT: Mr. Balbi, have you had a chance to
27 review the PSI with your attorney?
THE DEFENDANT: He explained the details to me,
yes, Your Honor.
THE COURT: All right. Have you had a chance to
read it?
THE DEFENDANT: No, I have not.
THE COURT: Sit down and read it. We’1l recall
your case.
(The matter was passed)
(The matter was recalled)
10 ATTY. MOORE: Your Honor, if we can recall
1 Jonathan Balbi.
12 THE CLERK: 202.
13 THE COURT: Yes.
~~
14 ATTY. BARRAND: Good morning, Your Honor.
15 THE COURT: Good morning again, counsel. Good
16 morning, Mr. Balbi.
17 THE DEFENDANT: Good morning again, Your Honor.
18 THE COURT: Sir, have you had a chance to review
19 the PSI?
20 THE DEFENDANT: Yes, I have, sir.
21 THE COURT: All right. Do you have any changes
22 or corrections to the PSI?
23 THE DEFENDANT: My wife’s name is incorrect.
24 THE COURT: All right.
,
on 25 THE DEFENDANT: She is also not working. She's
26 unemployed. And there was a part where when I was
27 arrested, I had turned myself in, the police officer
had called me and I had gone down to Troop G and
turned myself in.
THE COURT: All right. All right. Those
changes will be made to the PSI. Any -- anything
else, sir, that needs to be changed to the PSI?
THE DEFENDANT: The rest was correct, Your
Honor.
THE COURT: Thank you, sir.
All right. Attorney Moore, I understand the
10 complaining witness is present today; is that
11 correct?
12 ATTY. MOORE: Yes, Your Honor.
vos
13 THE COURT: All right. Would you like to go
14 forward with your complaining witness?
15 Good morning, Miss.
16 MS. SANTIAGO: Good morning, Your Honor.
17 THE COURT: Thank you for being here this
18 morning.
19 Could you please state your name for the record?
20 MS. SANTIAGO: Jamie Santiago.
21 THE COURT: Thank you, Ms. Santiago. And the
22 record will reflect that this is your husband?
23 MS. SANTIAGO: Yes.
24 THE COURT: And who is the pretty --
25 MS. SANTIAGO: My daughter, Gianna.
26 THE COURT: Gianna is here. Good morning,
, young
27 lady.
All right. Miss, I’1l hear from you. Thank
rae,
you.
MS. SANTIAGO: On September 16, 2015, I
received a call that my husband, Johnny Santiago was
in a motorcycle accident on his way home from work.
At the time, my daughter was just under six months
old. I put my daughter in the car and drove an hour
a half through traffic, praying my husband, her
father, would be okay. While he does, thank God,
10 stand before you alive, he most certainly is not
11 well.
12 For the past almost two years he’s been in and
13 out of doctors’ offices and hospitals and received
14 physical therapy, epidurals and surgery. He has been
15 forced to manage his pain with prescriptions.
16 “on June 12% 2017, I suffered a miscarriage most
17 likely due to the amount of pain medication my
18 husband was taking This man took away my husband in
19 a way he can never understand.
20 My husband is a strong man and is not the type
21 to take comfort in pills, but the pain was too great
22 without them. Painkillers and constant pain make you
23 into a different person. As new parents, away from
24 our families, this was the last! thing we needed.
25 I am thankful that I did not have to tell my
26 little girl her daddy was never coming home, however,
27 I honestly cannot comprehend how a human being can do
something like this to another’ human being and just
a
drive away like nothing happened.
Mr. Balbi, the man you hit is the only man I’ve
ever loved. He is my best friend. He is the father
of my child. He’s a son, a brother, a friend,
someone who would give you the shirt off of his back,
and you left him on the side of the road like he was
nothing.
Thank you for letting me address the court
10 today, Your Honor.
11 THE COURT: Thank you, Ms. Santiago.
12 Mr. Santiago, is there anything you'd like to
13 add, six?
von
14 MR. SANTIAGO: On September 16, 2015, I was
15 driving my motorcycle from work. I’m a commercial
16 diver. I work in the state of New York. I commute a
17 lot, about 1,000 to eleven hundred miles a week
18 average. I’m the sole provider for my family.
19 There was a lot of traffic that day. I was
20 driving in the center lane when Mr. Balbi decided to
21 exercise no caution, show no concern or. regard for
22 anybody on.the road, cut me off, hit the front of my
23 bike which caused me to slam on my brakes and dump my
24 bike.
25 I fortunately was wearing safety gear. My wife
26 made sure I was always wearing, so I had a helmet,
27 motorcycle jacket, spine protector, gloves, steel-toe
boots and jeans.
I saw Mr. Balbi stop. I saw him look at me, and
then he sped off. And I was fortunate that someone
stopped, Mr. Asimar (phonetic), which is the witness
to the statement. He stopped and he handed me a
business card. He was in the passenger seat and he
i
was like, yeah, I’m going for him and he ran after
him and he had pictures of the -- Mr. Balbi driving
the truck. He was getting off the exit, his license
10 plates.
|
a1 And I just want the Court to know that I -- I am
12 a husband and father and I try my hardest to do what
13 I’m supposed to do. But with injuries like this,
oo
14 it’s very difficult for me to do my job. So going
15 back and forth to New York with a back injury, not
16 being able to pick up my daughter, taking pain
17 medication, it just -- it makes life very difficult.
18 I got toa point where I had to get surgery. I
19 couldn’t even pick up my daughter. So the surgery
20 was something I was fighting with because I’m, as a
21 diver, we can’t have a back surgery. If we do and
22 there’s some kind of numbness or scar tissue, it
23 could disqualify me permanently from my work. This
I
24 is what I’ve been doing for 15 years.
25 And so after doing the surgery, got off the pain
26 medications and now I’m -- I’m still having trouble.
27 I’m still -- I have trouble putting on my socks every
morning. So despite the accident and the injuries,
cp
we’ve also problems directly with getting information
from Mr. Balbi. We had the wrong policy insurance
/
number. We never had a social security number. We
didn’t have the right address for Mr. Balbi until
just now.
So I just wanted you guys to -- to thank you for
the opportunity to let us speak. I wanted to address
the Court and Mr. Balbi for blatantly disregarding my
10 safety and forcing me to hit the floor ona moving
11 object, and your negligence put me and my family ina
12 completely different life changing situation.
13 So I hope that you take this into consideration,
14 Your Honor, when you appropriately hand out whatever
15 punishment you’re going to hand out.
16 THE COURT: Thank you, Mr: Santiago. I
17 appreciate you’re taking the time to come here and
18 participate in our system of justice. Thank you,
19 sir. |i
|
I
20 MS. SANTIAGO: Thank you.
21 THE COURT: Thank you again, Ms. Santiago.
22 All right. Did you want to add anything else,
23 Attorney Moore?
24 ATTY. MOORE: Your Honor, I just want to
25 highlight. Mr. Balbi is not an 18 year old. He’s a
26 33 year old. He grew up in a support -~ in a home
27 with a supportive mother. He apparently had a decent
childhood. According to the PSI, he had -- he was
economically well to do.
I think that the Court should consider that this
was a bad accident with injuries, and I think that
the Court should also consider that Mr. Balbi also --
already has convictions as he appears before you.
THE COURT: Thank you. Attorney Barrand, is
there anything you’d like to add?
ATTY. BARRAND: Yes, Your Honor. First I’d just
10 like to-address the statement that Mr Balbi had a
11 supportive mother and a good childhood because as I
12 read ;the Pre-Sentencing Investigation, it -- without
13 wanting to get into much detail, indicates a very
14 abuse relationship not a supportive one as I read it,
1s including ultimately a protective order having been
16 issued.
17 As I indicted in my memorandum to the Court,’I
18 did reach out to the civil attorney for Mr. Santiago,
19 Mr. Eisdorfer of New Jersey and asked him if there
20 was any information we could provide to assist in the
21 situation. He did not ask me for Mr. Balbi’s social
22 security number or address. We would have readily
23 furnished either of those pieces of information
24 immediately.
vs 25 He did ask us to investigate whether other
26 insurance policies might be applicable. We looked
27 into it. Unfortunately only the auto liability
policy in play was applicable, however, we did also
offer to supplement that policy with a substantial
amount. of Mr. Balbi’s personal assets to potentially
negotiate a settlement if needed. All that
information was provided.
Mr. Balbi is himself a father. He has a nine
month old daughter who was born after this incident
who he cares for, as well as a wife who was recently
unemployed, formerly a dental hygienist who he is
10 also caring for.
11 On top of that, he owns and operates a company
12 that employs 11 people, so indirectly he is also
13 caring for and supporting his employees and their
14 families.
15 In this circumstance, I think the totality of
16 justice -~ Mr. Balbi definitely understands that he
17 has done wrong here. He understands that he has hurt
18 someone here and he is willing to do everything
19 possible in order to make it right. He’s willing to
20 put every financial asset he has on the table to make
21 it right, however unfortunately time spent in jail
22 would only serve to deteriorate those financial
23 assets, make it harder for him to make it right and
24 take him away from his daughter and employees.
25 THE COURT: All right, Mr. Balbi, is there
26 anything you’d like to ‘say, sir, before I impose
27 sentence?
10
THE DEFENDANT: There’s nothing I can say to --
besides I’m incredibly sorry. That’s the totality of
it.
THE COURT: All right. All right. Well, I’ve
given this matter considerable consideration. I a+
I’ve reviewed the PSI at least twice and then again
before coming out here on the bench during the break
I reviewed it.
This is a serious offense. ‘The terms of
10 imprisonment are on the Evading Responsibility up to
ii a year. The Operating Under Suspension is punishable
12 by up to three months, and there is a fine applicable
vo 13 to Failure to Drive in the Proper Lane.
14 I’m not sure that the statutory maximum terms of
is imprisonment quite frankly reflect the seriousness of
16 the consequences of what Mr. Balbi did. I notice
17 that Ms..Santiago mentioned that the accident
18 resulted.in her husband being left on the side of the
19 road. It’s actually even more serious than that.
20 This occurred in the middle lane of I-95, and Mr.
21 Santiago’s motorcycle went down in the middle lane
22 during traffic. He very easily could have been
23 struck by another motor vehicle and I know everyone
24 here, in particular his family, are grateful that it
25 wasn’t more serious.
26 Sir, I have to take into consideration your past
27 criminal record. You do have a criminal record. I
a1
understand that you have a felony conviction for
—_
Larceny and Criminal Mischief. In those cases, the
Court imposed a three year term of imprisonment,
execution after the service of five months followed
by three years probation. That’s back from 1999, and
then in 2001, Mr. Balbi was convicted of Criminal
Mischief in the first degree for which he was
sentenced to three years, execution suspended after
the service of five months and three years probation.
10 I have to factor in the fact that Mr. Balbi left
a. the scene of the accident. Mr. Balbi, I know you’re
12 sorry now but you weren’t sorry then when Mr.
13 Santiago’s motorcycle went down in the middle.of the
as,
14 highway. You fled. As you saw Mr. Santiago appear
15 in front of you today, sir, he’s not a dog. He’s a
16 man and he breathes the same air that you do and his
17 blood flows red just like yours, mine and everyone
18 else in this courtroom, but you left him there.
19 I noticed that you mentioned to probation, you
20 stated I was not aware that it had happened and I
21 went about my day. Sir, that just does not square
22 with what -- what happened. When you were contacted
23 by the Connecticut State Police, you lied. If you
24 didn’t know that the accident happened, there’d be no
—~ 25 reason to lie. That compounds the seriousness of
26 what you did, Mr. Balbi.
27 I also have to -- so I have to consider the
12
,
danger that you pose to the community, sir, your past
oo
criminal record. I have to send a message of
deterrence to the public and to you in particular.
I also have to factor in the need to provide
just restitution to the complaining witness. He has
some extensive medical and financial losses. So I
factored that in. I think there needs to be a term
of supervision and a certain amount of time hanging
over so that there’s leverage on the matter of
10 restitution.
a. So factoring all of those things into
12 consideration, it’s the sentence of the Court as
13 follows:
~
14 On count three, Failure to Drive in the Proper
15 Lane, the defendant is ordered to pay a fine of $90
16 plus court costs. »
17 On count two, on the charge of Operating a Motor
18 Vehicle Under Suspension, the defendant is committed
19 to the custody of the Commissioner of Corrections for
20 a period of three months, execution suspended
21 followed by one year of probation.
22 On count one, Evading Responsibility, the
23 defendant is committed to the custody of the
24 Commissioner of Corrections for period of one year,
vos, 25 execution suspended after the service of six months,
26 followed by three years probation. Those terms are
27 to ‘run consecutive to one another, for a total
13
effective sentence of 15 months, execution suspended
after the service of six months followed by three
years probation.
I suspect that the Santiagos are probably
unhappy with :the six month term of imprisonment and
quite frankly, the record should reflect that I don’t
know that I’m entirely satisfied with the six month
term of imprisonment. Mr. Balbi's
Preview
DOCKET NO: KNL-CV-17-6031260-S SUPERIOR COURT JOHNY SANTIAGO AND JAIME SANTIAGO JD OF NEW LONDON Vv NEW LONDON JONATHAN BALBI; HIGH PRESSURE TECHNOLOGIES, LLC AND CERTIFIED CYLINDER TESTING, INC. LLC JUNE 25, 2019 PLAINTIFE’S MOTION FOR ORDER PURSUANT TO PRACTICE BOOK §43-9(6) The plaintiffs, Johny Santiago and Jaime Santiago, hereby move for an order from the Court authorizing the disclosure of the presentence investigation report in the matter of State v. Jon: athan Balbi, Superior Court, G.A. #20 Docket No. S20N-MV15-0469884-S. Connecticut Practice Book Sec 43-9(6) provides that upon a showing to the Court where a matter is pending, the presentence investigation report shall be made available in any judicial proceeding where the report is determined to be relevant to that proceeding. In this civil action, the plaintiff Johny Santiago, has alleged that the defendant, Jonathan Balbi, drove a motor vehicle into his lane of travel on September 16, 2015, striking his motorcycle and causing him to crash, sustaining serious bodily injury. It is further alleged that Balbi then fled the scene. It is undisputed that at the time of the accident Balbi was returning from a delivery of helium to a customer in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The vehicle Balbi was driving was owned by Hi Pressure Technologies Inc. However according to its discovery responses in this action, Hi Pressure Tech had ceased commercial activities 9 months prior to the 1 Polito & Associates, LLC ¢ Attorneys at Law 567 Vauxhall Street Extension, Suite 230 ¢ Waterford ¢ Connecticut 06385 (860) 447-3300 ¢ Fax (860) 447-3389 accident and was effectively dissolved but for outstanding tax issues. Balbi claims that he had “borrowed” the vehicle and was acting in a self-employed capacity on the date of this accident. That statement however is contradicted by several others made by Balbi and his criminal attorney shortly after the accident. As stated, Balbi initially fled the scene, however a bystander was able to record his license plate and reported it to authorities. When contacted by the Connecticut State Police Balbi initially denied even being in the State of Connecticut when the accident occurred. Balbi stated to the Connecticut State Police that he owned “a company” but that the accident must have been caused by one of his employees; a statement which contradicts his assertion that he was acting in a self -employed capacity. Balbi later recanted acknowledging that he had lied to the Connecticut State Police and that it was in fact he who was operating the vehicle involved in the accident. Balbi was charged and convicted for fleeing the scene of the accident as well as reckless endangerment and sentenced to prison by the Honorable Alex Hernandez in the above mentioned criminal action. As part of that criminal action, a presentencing report was generated which Balbi read during his sentencing, affirming it was accurate minus three minor details. Exhibit A. During the sentencing hearing for that criminal action, Balbi, through his attorney, stated on the record that he was prepared to offer “substantial” “personal assets” to negotiate a settlement with the plaintiff Johny Santiago. Exhibit A. He further alleged that he owned and operated a company which employed 11 people. Id. He further indicated that he would again, put “every financial asset he has on the table” for Mr. Santiago. Id. That never happened. 2 Polito & Associates, LLC ¢ Attorneys at Law 567 Vauxhall Street Extension, Suite 230 ¢ Waterford ¢ Connecticut 06385 (860) 447-3300 # Fax (860) 447-3389 Last week Mr. Balbi testified under oath however that he did not own a company at that time and never has. He further testified that at the time of the accident, although he was driving a vehicle owned by High Pressure Tech, he was not employed by them or working in any capacity for them or any other entity when the accident happened. These statements directly contradict those made in the criminal sentencing by his attorney and those that Balbi personally made during a recorded statement to Progressive Insurance wherein he again stated that he was the “Operations Manager” of the company and referred again to other employees involved in that operation. Ex B. The presentence investigation report would include details about Mr. Balbi’s employment and financial situation at the time of the accident. Due to Mr. Balbi’s contradictory statements, there are serious questions as to who Mr. Balbi was actually employed by on the date of the accident and what the real status of his financial situation was, and is. The presentence investigation report is therefore highly relevant to the credibility of statements made by Mr. Balbi in the subject action as well. 3 Polito & Associates, LLC ¢ Attorneys at Law 567 Vauxhall Street Extension, Suite 230 ¢ Waterford ¢ Connecticut 06385 (860) 447-3300 # Fax (860) 447-3389 Wherefore, the plaintiffs respectfully request that the Court issue an Order permitting the presentence investigation report in the matter of State v. Jonathan Balbi, Superior Court, G.A. #20 Docket No. S20N-MV15-0469884-S, be disclosed to counsel in this matter. THE PLAINTIFF By James M. Harrington, Esq. Polito & Associates, 4 Polito & Associates, LLC # Attorneys at Law 567 Vauxhall Street Extension, Suite 230 # Waterford # Connecticut 06385 (860) 447-3300 # Fax (860) 447-3389 CERTIFICATION Thereby certify that a copy of the foregoing was sent via electronic mail this 25" day of June 2019 to the following counsel of record: Lewis Lerman, Esquire — lerman@halloransage.com Halloran Sage 315 Post Road West Westport, CT 06880 Robert O. Hickey, Esquire — rohickey@ryandelucalaw.com Ryan Ryan Deluca LLP 1000 Lafayette Boulevard Suite 800 Bridgeport, CT 06604 James M. Harrington, Esq. Commissioner of Superior 5 Polito & Associates, LLC ¢ Attorneys at Law 567 Vauxhall Street Extension, Suite 230 ¢ Waterford ¢ Connecticut 06385 (860) 447-3300 # Fax (860) 447-3389 EXHIBIT A S20N-MV15~-0469884-S SUPERIOR COURT STATE OF CONNECTICUT G.A. #20 Vv AT NORWALK, CONNECTICUT JONATHAN BALBI JULY 18, 2017 BEFORE THE HONORABLE ALEX HERNANDEZ, JUDGE & A PPEARANCES a Representing the State of Connecticut: ATTORNEY JUSTINA MOORE Office of the State’s Attorney 17 Belden Avenue Norwalk, CT 06850 Representing the Defendant: ATTORNEY MAXWELL BARRAND Discala & Discala 11 North Main Street Norwalk, cT 06854 Recorded & Transcribed by: Donna Bonenfant Court Recording Monitor 17 Belden Avenue Norwalk, CT 06850 THE COURT: Good afternoon, Attorney Moore. ot, ATTY. MOORE: Good afternoon, Your Honor. THE COURT: Or good morning, sorry. ATTY. MOORE: Good morning. The State calls Jonathan Balbi. THE COURT: Good morning Attorney Barrand. ATTY. BARRAND: Good morning, Your Honor. Maxwell Barrand for Mr. Balbi who is present at my left. 10 THE COURT: Good morning, Mr. Balbi. 11 THE CLERK: 202, Your Honor. 12 ATTY. BARRAND: This matter is down for 13 entencing today, Your Honor. I did provide a memo om 14 yesterday regarding sentencing and some efforts that is we made in order to try to make things right with the 16 victim. 17 THE COURT: Yes. Thank you, counsel. I 18 received that. Take care of some housekeeping 19 matters first. 20 PSI was prepared. Attorney Barrand, have you an 21 opportunity to review the PSI? 22 ATTY. BARRAND: I have, Your Honor. 23 THE COURT: And do you have any changes, 24 corrections to the PSI? 25 ATTY. BARRAND: I do not, Your Honor. oo 26 THE COURT: Mr. Balbi, have you had a chance to 27 review the PSI with your attorney? THE DEFENDANT: He explained the details to me, yes, Your Honor. THE COURT: All right. Have you had a chance to read it? THE DEFENDANT: No, I have not. THE COURT: Sit down and read it. We’1l recall your case. (The matter was passed) (The matter was recalled) 10 ATTY. MOORE: Your Honor, if we can recall 1 Jonathan Balbi. 12 THE CLERK: 202. 13 THE COURT: Yes. ~~ 14 ATTY. BARRAND: Good morning, Your Honor. 15 THE COURT: Good morning again, counsel. Good 16 morning, Mr. Balbi. 17 THE DEFENDANT: Good morning again, Your Honor. 18 THE COURT: Sir, have you had a chance to review 19 the PSI? 20 THE DEFENDANT: Yes, I have, sir. 21 THE COURT: All right. Do you have any changes 22 or corrections to the PSI? 23 THE DEFENDANT: My wife’s name is incorrect. 24 THE COURT: All right. , on 25 THE DEFENDANT: She is also not working. She's 26 unemployed. And there was a part where when I was 27 arrested, I had turned myself in, the police officer had called me and I had gone down to Troop G and turned myself in. THE COURT: All right. All right. Those changes will be made to the PSI. Any -- anything else, sir, that needs to be changed to the PSI? THE DEFENDANT: The rest was correct, Your Honor. THE COURT: Thank you, sir. All right. Attorney Moore, I understand the 10 complaining witness is present today; is that 11 correct? 12 ATTY. MOORE: Yes, Your Honor. vos 13 THE COURT: All right. Would you like to go 14 forward with your complaining witness? 15 Good morning, Miss. 16 MS. SANTIAGO: Good morning, Your Honor. 17 THE COURT: Thank you for being here this 18 morning. 19 Could you please state your name for the record? 20 MS. SANTIAGO: Jamie Santiago. 21 THE COURT: Thank you, Ms. Santiago. And the 22 record will reflect that this is your husband? 23 MS. SANTIAGO: Yes. 24 THE COURT: And who is the pretty -- 25 MS. SANTIAGO: My daughter, Gianna. 26 THE COURT: Gianna is here. Good morning, , young 27 lady. All right. Miss, I’1l hear from you. Thank rae, you. MS. SANTIAGO: On September 16, 2015, I received a call that my husband, Johnny Santiago was in a motorcycle accident on his way home from work. At the time, my daughter was just under six months old. I put my daughter in the car and drove an hour a half through traffic, praying my husband, her father, would be okay. While he does, thank God, 10 stand before you alive, he most certainly is not 11 well. 12 For the past almost two years he’s been in and 13 out of doctors’ offices and hospitals and received 14 physical therapy, epidurals and surgery. He has been 15 forced to manage his pain with prescriptions. 16 “on June 12% 2017, I suffered a miscarriage most 17 likely due to the amount of pain medication my 18 husband was taking This man took away my husband in 19 a way he can never understand. 20 My husband is a strong man and is not the type 21 to take comfort in pills, but the pain was too great 22 without them. Painkillers and constant pain make you 23 into a different person. As new parents, away from 24 our families, this was the last! thing we needed. 25 I am thankful that I did not have to tell my 26 little girl her daddy was never coming home, however, 27 I honestly cannot comprehend how a human being can do something like this to another’ human being and just a drive away like nothing happened. Mr. Balbi, the man you hit is the only man I’ve ever loved. He is my best friend. He is the father of my child. He’s a son, a brother, a friend, someone who would give you the shirt off of his back, and you left him on the side of the road like he was nothing. Thank you for letting me address the court 10 today, Your Honor. 11 THE COURT: Thank you, Ms. Santiago. 12 Mr. Santiago, is there anything you'd like to 13 add, six? von 14 MR. SANTIAGO: On September 16, 2015, I was 15 driving my motorcycle from work. I’m a commercial 16 diver. I work in the state of New York. I commute a 17 lot, about 1,000 to eleven hundred miles a week 18 average. I’m the sole provider for my family. 19 There was a lot of traffic that day. I was 20 driving in the center lane when Mr. Balbi decided to 21 exercise no caution, show no concern or. regard for 22 anybody on.the road, cut me off, hit the front of my 23 bike which caused me to slam on my brakes and dump my 24 bike. 25 I fortunately was wearing safety gear. My wife 26 made sure I was always wearing, so I had a helmet, 27 motorcycle jacket, spine protector, gloves, steel-toe boots and jeans. I saw Mr. Balbi stop. I saw him look at me, and then he sped off. And I was fortunate that someone stopped, Mr. Asimar (phonetic), which is the witness to the statement. He stopped and he handed me a business card. He was in the passenger seat and he i was like, yeah, I’m going for him and he ran after him and he had pictures of the -- Mr. Balbi driving the truck. He was getting off the exit, his license 10 plates. | a1 And I just want the Court to know that I -- I am 12 a husband and father and I try my hardest to do what 13 I’m supposed to do. But with injuries like this, oo 14 it’s very difficult for me to do my job. So going 15 back and forth to New York with a back injury, not 16 being able to pick up my daughter, taking pain 17 medication, it just -- it makes life very difficult. 18 I got toa point where I had to get surgery. I 19 couldn’t even pick up my daughter. So the surgery 20 was something I was fighting with because I’m, as a 21 diver, we can’t have a back surgery. If we do and 22 there’s some kind of numbness or scar tissue, it 23 could disqualify me permanently from my work. This I 24 is what I’ve been doing for 15 years. 25 And so after doing the surgery, got off the pain 26 medications and now I’m -- I’m still having trouble. 27 I’m still -- I have trouble putting on my socks every morning. So despite the accident and the injuries, cp we’ve also problems directly with getting information from Mr. Balbi. We had the wrong policy insurance / number. We never had a social security number. We didn’t have the right address for Mr. Balbi until just now. So I just wanted you guys to -- to thank you for the opportunity to let us speak. I wanted to address the Court and Mr. Balbi for blatantly disregarding my 10 safety and forcing me to hit the floor ona moving 11 object, and your negligence put me and my family ina 12 completely different life changing situation. 13 So I hope that you take this into consideration, 14 Your Honor, when you appropriately hand out whatever 15 punishment you’re going to hand out. 16 THE COURT: Thank you, Mr: Santiago. I 17 appreciate you’re taking the time to come here and 18 participate in our system of justice. Thank you, 19 sir. |i | I 20 MS. SANTIAGO: Thank you. 21 THE COURT: Thank you again, Ms. Santiago. 22 All right. Did you want to add anything else, 23 Attorney Moore? 24 ATTY. MOORE: Your Honor, I just want to 25 highlight. Mr. Balbi is not an 18 year old. He’s a 26 33 year old. He grew up in a support -~ in a home 27 with a supportive mother. He apparently had a decent childhood. According to the PSI, he had -- he was economically well to do. I think that the Court should consider that this was a bad accident with injuries, and I think that the Court should also consider that Mr. Balbi also -- already has convictions as he appears before you. THE COURT: Thank you. Attorney Barrand, is there anything you’d like to add? ATTY. BARRAND: Yes, Your Honor. First I’d just 10 like to-address the statement that Mr Balbi had a 11 supportive mother and a good childhood because as I 12 read ;the Pre-Sentencing Investigation, it -- without 13 wanting to get into much detail, indicates a very 14 abuse relationship not a supportive one as I read it, 1s including ultimately a protective order having been 16 issued. 17 As I indicted in my memorandum to the Court,’I 18 did reach out to the civil attorney for Mr. Santiago, 19 Mr. Eisdorfer of New Jersey and asked him if there 20 was any information we could provide to assist in the 21 situation. He did not ask me for Mr. Balbi’s social 22 security number or address. We would have readily 23 furnished either of those pieces of information 24 immediately. vs 25 He did ask us to investigate whether other 26 insurance policies might be applicable. We looked 27 into it. Unfortunately only the auto liability policy in play was applicable, however, we did also offer to supplement that policy with a substantial amount. of Mr. Balbi’s personal assets to potentially negotiate a settlement if needed. All that information was provided. Mr. Balbi is himself a father. He has a nine month old daughter who was born after this incident who he cares for, as well as a wife who was recently unemployed, formerly a dental hygienist who he is 10 also caring for. 11 On top of that, he owns and operates a company 12 that employs 11 people, so indirectly he is also 13 caring for and supporting his employees and their 14 families. 15 In this circumstance, I think the totality of 16 justice -~ Mr. Balbi definitely understands that he 17 has done wrong here. He understands that he has hurt 18 someone here and he is willing to do everything 19 possible in order to make it right. He’s willing to 20 put every financial asset he has on the table to make 21 it right, however unfortunately time spent in jail 22 would only serve to deteriorate those financial 23 assets, make it harder for him to make it right and 24 take him away from his daughter and employees. 25 THE COURT: All right, Mr. Balbi, is there 26 anything you’d like to ‘say, sir, before I impose 27 sentence? 10 THE DEFENDANT: There’s nothing I can say to -- besides I’m incredibly sorry. That’s the totality of it. THE COURT: All right. All right. Well, I’ve given this matter considerable consideration. I a+ I’ve reviewed the PSI at least twice and then again before coming out here on the bench during the break I reviewed it. This is a serious offense. ‘The terms of 10 imprisonment are on the Evading Responsibility up to ii a year. The Operating Under Suspension is punishable 12 by up to three months, and there is a fine applicable vo 13 to Failure to Drive in the Proper Lane. 14 I’m not sure that the statutory maximum terms of is imprisonment quite frankly reflect the seriousness of 16 the consequences of what Mr. Balbi did. I notice 17 that Ms..Santiago mentioned that the accident 18 resulted.in her husband being left on the side of the 19 road. It’s actually even more serious than that. 20 This occurred in the middle lane of I-95, and Mr. 21 Santiago’s motorcycle went down in the middle lane 22 during traffic. He very easily could have been 23 struck by another motor vehicle and I know everyone 24 here, in particular his family, are grateful that it 25 wasn’t more serious. 26 Sir, I have to take into consideration your past 27 criminal record. You do have a criminal record. I a1 understand that you have a felony conviction for —_ Larceny and Criminal Mischief. In those cases, the Court imposed a three year term of imprisonment, execution after the service of five months followed by three years probation. That’s back from 1999, and then in 2001, Mr. Balbi was convicted of Criminal Mischief in the first degree for which he was sentenced to three years, execution suspended after the service of five months and three years probation. 10 I have to factor in the fact that Mr. Balbi left a. the scene of the accident. Mr. Balbi, I know you’re 12 sorry now but you weren’t sorry then when Mr. 13 Santiago’s motorcycle went down in the middle.of the as, 14 highway. You fled. As you saw Mr. Santiago appear 15 in front of you today, sir, he’s not a dog. He’s a 16 man and he breathes the same air that you do and his 17 blood flows red just like yours, mine and everyone 18 else in this courtroom, but you left him there. 19 I noticed that you mentioned to probation, you 20 stated I was not aware that it had happened and I 21 went about my day. Sir, that just does not square 22 with what -- what happened. When you were contacted 23 by the Connecticut State Police, you lied. If you 24 didn’t know that the accident happened, there’d be no —~ 25 reason to lie. That compounds the seriousness of 26 what you did, Mr. Balbi. 27 I also have to -- so I have to consider the 12 , danger that you pose to the community, sir, your past oo criminal record. I have to send a message of deterrence to the public and to you in particular. I also have to factor in the need to provide just restitution to the complaining witness. He has some extensive medical and financial losses. So I factored that in. I think there needs to be a term of supervision and a certain amount of time hanging over so that there’s leverage on the matter of 10 restitution. a. So factoring all of those things into 12 consideration, it’s the sentence of the Court as 13 follows: ~ 14 On count three, Failure to Drive in the Proper 15 Lane, the defendant is ordered to pay a fine of $90 16 plus court costs. » 17 On count two, on the charge of Operating a Motor 18 Vehicle Under Suspension, the defendant is committed 19 to the custody of the Commissioner of Corrections for 20 a period of three months, execution suspended 21 followed by one year of probation. 22 On count one, Evading Responsibility, the 23 defendant is committed to the custody of the 24 Commissioner of Corrections for period of one year, vos, 25 execution suspended after the service of six months, 26 followed by three years probation. Those terms are 27 to ‘run consecutive to one another, for a total 13 effective sentence of 15 months, execution suspended after the service of six months followed by three years probation. I suspect that the Santiagos are probably unhappy with :the six month term of imprisonment and quite frankly, the record should reflect that I don’t know that I’m entirely satisfied with the six month term of imprisonment. Mr. Balbi's