Osprey man sentenced to 15 years in prison for hit-and-run that killed Pine View student

Sarah Alexander looked up at a screen behind her in one of the courtrooms of the Judge Lynn N. Silvertooth Judicial Center on Thursday afternoon. Displayed was a photo of her daughter, Lilly Glaubach, when she was six months old holding her foot up to her mouth.

Assistant State Attorney Josh Wertheim scrolled through a multitude of photos and videos of Lilly with her family and friends in a presentation.

Sarah Alexander laughed recalling when the photos were taken, smiling up at her daughter, the occasional tear rolling down her cheek. In the gallery, giggles escaped Lilly’s friends as they too remembered the moments.

Across from Sarah Alexander at the defendant’s table, David Chang lowered his head over the table as his hands occasionally came up to his face with a tissue peeking out to wipe away tears.

“I hope Lilly’s memory will be a reminder of empathy, responsibility, and the preciousness of life,” Sarah Alexander said, asking Sarasota Circuit Court Judge Donna Padar for the maximum sentence for Chang, the driver of the car that slammed into Lilly on Aug. 16, 2022, as she was bicycling across East Bay Street and then fled the scene.

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Padar sentenced Chang, of Osprey, to 15 years for leaving the scene of a crash that caused great injury or death and five years for tampering with evidence, to run concurrently, in connection to the fatal hit-and-run crash that killed the 13-year-old bicyclist at an intersection near Pine View School.

Padar, a Pine View School alumna, explained to everyone her reasoning for the sentencing, noting how difficult it must be for both sides — for Lilly’s family and friends to be in the same room as the man they believed killed their daughter, and for Chang and his family to be in the presence of Lilly’s family and friends and their palpable grief.

“Someone referenced that the attorneys and the judges and the other courtroom personnel involved in the criminal justice system, see things like this every single day. We do not,” Padar said.

Padar, who was a prosecutor for crimes against children for 12 years and a judge for 17 years, said this was a particularly difficult case, and no one involved would forget it.

“If grief is the price that you pay for love, then it is very clear that Lilly was loved greatly,” Padar said.

Sarah and Paul Alexander said they knew nothing would bring their daughter back, but they're thankful Padar could see the truth of what happened and made the right decision, adding it was clear she really cared about both families destroyed by Chang's actions.

The family is also thankful the case has concluded and wasn't dragged on, giving them closure on this chapter so they can move on with the grieving process.

"It would be wonderful if he could get 100 years or a day, and that would bring Lilly back, but it's not going to," Sarah Alexander said. "At least it feels like the judge knows that he was at fault for this crime, that he was the one who did this, and he's the one ultimately that destroyed our lives and his own family's lives."

Chang, 66, pleaded no contest to first-degree felony hit-and-run that involved a death and third-degree tampering with evidence in March 2023. He had a frown etched onto his face on Thursday, his body mostly hunched over the defendant’s table throughout the course of the day.

Behind him in the gallery, his wife and daughter sat together with a row of others there to support him. Both broke down in tears as they listened to statements made by those who loved Lilly.

Chang confessed to the crime to officers a day after someone notified police of seeing a car driving with a smashed windshield that matched the description of the car that hit Lilly. An affidavit in the case stated Glaubach was bicycling across the intersection of East Bay Street and Old Venice Road near the school when a dark-colored sedan hit her in the mid-afternoon.

The car hadn’t stopped, and Chang fled to Tampa to an auto body shop where he lied about how his windshield was broken, according to the affidavit and testimony in court.

Lilly died from her injuries almost two weeks after the crash surrounded by loved ones as she took her final breath.

Chang's attorney, Peter Aiken, filed a motion for a downward departure in May asking the court to be lenient in its decision and to sentence Chang to 36 months of home confinement. In court, Chang said his wife, whom he had been married to for 43 years, has health problems and had been dependent on him as her sole provider and caregiver for their entire marriage, and she still requires his care.

During the day-long hearing, Padar heard from 20 of Glaubach's family, friends, teachers, and community members who remembered Glaubach as kind, compassionate, confident, loyal, the best big sister to her brothers, and a bright light in many people’s lives. Those who testified on behalf of Chang described him as being a man of God, a devoted father and husband who put everyone’s needs before himself.

The courtroom, which had been mostly empty during the plea hearing with only Chang's family and Glaubach's mom and stepfather sitting in the gallery, was filled during the sentencing hearing with at least 50 friends and family for both families and another 80 people on Zoom.

Family, friends grieve the loss of Lilly Glaubach

As Lilly’s family and friends entered the courtroom, each wore a small teal blue ribbon with a little white lily clipped to it in honor of the 13-year-old.

For those who spoke before the judge, they described how Aug. 16, 2022, is a date they will never forget.

Erica Divento was driving east on East Bay Street when she witnessed Lilly get hit by the car. She remembered seeing the beautiful young girl lying alone in her blood in the middle of the road after she was struck, and how the car that slammed into her drove away.

“All I could do was scream,” Divento said in her letter read by Wertheim. She called out to those nearby to call 911 and to get help while she shielded Lilly from the hot sun, reassuring the teen she wasn’t alone.

“I feel like this monster should spend the rest of his life in prison,” Divento said.

Seven of Lilly’s friends took to the stand to share prepared statements, with each detailing how Lilly’s death heavily impacted them — many have had nightmares or suffered from depression, some let their grades drop, and each one missing their dear friend whom they thought they’d have a lifetime together for making memories.

Kiana Cullen, who sported Lilly’s favorite Jordan sneakers and a smiley face necklace similar to Lilly’s, said she only has photos, Lilly’s clothes, and memories to remember her by.

Verite Molinaro, whose mother was Lilly’s sixth-grade teacher and also testified on the stand, said it has been a struggle every day knowing Lilly isn’t here anymore and that the world lost such a kind-hearted and loyal friend.

Twice a day, when Molinaro and her mother drive to school, they pass by the accident site, and every day, Molinaro squeezes her eyes shut and grips the handle of the car door.

“That road will forever be bumpy, it’ll never be smooth again,” she said.

Lilly’s grandfather, Matt Walton, wrote his statement on May 9, the day his 90-year-old father died while in hospice.

“He led a full life. We expected it,” Walton said. “Lilly’s death was not expected. She’s been robbed of all the joys in life — her first boyfriend, her first kiss, motherhood, graduating from college, her first job, her grandchildren, our great-grandchildren. Her death was certainly not expected … and should have been avoided.”

Howard Glaubach, Lilly’s father, read a statement from himself and one from his son and Lilly’s brother, Peter, describing how they now live in a darker and sadder world, how every future joy will be tinged with sadness, and how they love and miss Lilly so much.

Paul Alexander, Lilly’s stepfather, echoed Glaubach’s sentiments about how there is a piece missing from their family, how he cringes at the sound of a helicopter, hoping another family isn’t going through what their family has been through.

“Now, I have nothing left but my dreams for Lilly,” Paul Alexander said.

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Chang's family speak for first time

The sentencing hearing was the first time Chang and his family spoke out about what happened, and the first time the family was able to express remorse towards Lilly's family.

Chang broke down sobbing on the stand, claiming Lilly "suddenly" appeared out of nowhere when he hit her and that he hadn't been speeding or distracted when the crash occurred. He said he had kept driving and that he didn't hit the brakes due to panic and shock.

"Not a single day goes by I'm not thinking to trade my place with Lilly," Chang said, adding he'd give up the rest of his life in exchange for Lilly to have the rest of hers.

While addressing the court, Chang said he hoped the family could find it in their hearts to forgive him.

Both Daisy Chang and Davina Chang, Chang's wife and daughter, begged the court to not punish them by sentencing David Chang to a long time in prison. Chang's daughter said she's worried about her mother whose health has deteriorated while her father has been incarcerated at the jail.

"My mom needs her husband, and I need my dad," she said.

Daisy Chang said in 2020 a bicyclist crashed into her, causing her to have problems with mobility and her memory as she suffered a brain injury. She doesn't know how she will survive without her husband.

All those who gave statements on behalf of Chang said they'd met him at church, and that for as long as they've known him, he was a welcoming presence who cared deeply for his community and about his faith.

Richard Bruen, Chang's brother-in-law and friend, described Chang as being relentlessly generous to strangers and friends, putting their needs before his own no matter what. Bruen said it was uncharacteristic of Chang that he had fled the crash and hadn't stopped to help, describing the situation as "an unforeseen anomaly in his life."

Gabriela Szymanowska covers the legal system for the Herald-Tribune in partnership with Report for America. You can support her work with a tax-deductible donation to Report for America. Contact Gabriela Szymanowska at gszymanowska@gannett.com, or on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota County man sentenced in hit-run that killed Lilly Glaubach