Man found guilty in fatal 2019 hit-and-run on Carolina Beach Road

Nearly four years after her mother was hit and left for dead on Carolina Beach Road, Jennifer Faircloth Wissman looked at the man who had been behind the wheel and uttered three powerful words.

"I forgive you," Wissman said.

Her message came at the conclusion of a eight-day trial in New Hanover County Superior Court. A jury of 12 found Richard Sean Lesink guilty of one count of felony hit and run causing death and one count of misdemeanor driving with a revoked license.

The jury found Lesink not guilty on a registration violation charge.

Superior court judge Frank Jones sentenced Lesink to a minimum active sentence of 17 months to a maximum of 30 months for the felony conviction. Lesink was also sentenced to serve 20 days in prison for the misdemeanor charge. Lesink was out on bail awaiting trial, but he will get credit for previous time served in connection to the case.

"I challenge the people in this district attorney's office and law enforcement community to try the worst defendants who've done the worst things," District Attorney Ben David said following the conclusion of the trial. "Our priority will always be violent crime and career criminals committing any crime."

According to 2019 reports from the N.C. Highway Patrol, 67-year-old Sheila Faircloth was struck on Carolina Beach Road by a vehicle driven by Lesink around 11:10 p.m. on July 27, 2019. Faircloth was riding her bicycle on her way to the Silver Lake Market and was attempting to cross the intersection from Silver Lake Road.

After being charged in the fatal hit-and-run, Lesink pleaded not guilty. He said he knew he hit something but didn't know it was a person.

Lesink was arrested by the North Carolina Highway Patrol a few days later at a friend's house in Leland following an investigation, which included assistance from the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office.

Det. Sgt. Nicholas Lee, of the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office, provided testimony during the trial. He said it was determined Lesink was the driver through databases and video surveillance from Silver Lake Market and another store. Records from the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles showed that the vehicle, with revoked registration, was registered to his spouse. Facebook was also used to determine the owner was in a relationship with Lesink. Pictures on Facebook of his pool work showed the Durango in the background.

Trooper Jordan Maness collected evidence from the vehicle. The hood and grill were transported to the state's crime lab for DNA testing, and it was determined that DNA evidence found on the car matched that of Faircloth.

During a conversation between Lesink and law enforcement -- a recording of which was played during trial -- Lesink claimed he thought he hit a construction cone, Igloo cooler or road debris. During his testimony, Lesink said he thought it was a shopping cart from a store in the area.

The accident was captured on surveillance from the market, which was also presented as evidence. After the incident, Lesink stopped at a Scotchman convenience store on the way home to buy cigarettes and candy.

Brian Moore, Lesink's defense attorney, said the vehicle's airbags did not deploy. It was also determined in a highway patrol report that Faircloth was not wearing a helmet and failed to yield to traffic while riding her bicycle.

But Assistant District Attorney Kristi Severo argued that Lesink had a good vantage point because of the vehicle's headlights and lighting in the area.

While on the stand, Lesink pleaded that he would have stopped if he knew that he hit a person or an animal.

"God knows I would have," he said.

While defending Lesink, Moore said it was an emotional case.

"No matter how angry or upset you get, it doesn't change the evidence, the case or the law," Moore said.

Severo argued Lesink had a responsibility as a driver to stop following the collision.

"Your verdict speaks the truth in this case," she said during closing arguments.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: New Hanover jury convicts man in 2019 fatal hit-and-run