LOCKPORT — A Niagara County Court judge is coming under fire from the Niagara County district attorney for his sentence in a vehicular assault case that left an 11-year-old girl permanently injured.
Judge John Ottaviano sentenced Juajhane Y. Cox, 25, of the Falls, to serve 6 months in Niagara County jail, followed by five years of probation, for her guilty plea to a charge of second-degree vehicular assault. Cox had been accused of running over the young victim while driving under the influence of marijuana.
She was originally indicted by a Niagara County grand jury on charges of second-degree assault, second-degree vehicular assault, driving while ability impaired by a drug, Leandra’s Law DWI, reckless driving and a series of vehicle and traffic infractions. Cox could have faced up to four years in state prison.
In addition to not sentencing Cox to a state prison term, Ottaviano also allowed her to remain free until after the holiday season.
District Attorney Brian Seaman said the sentence provided “no justice” to the victim or her family.
“The law only allowed a maximum of 1 1/3 to 4 years in prison in this case despite the fact that the 11-year-old victim will spend the rest of her life under constant care for the brain injuries and other horrific injuries she suffered,” Seaman said. “We asked the court to give the maximum sentence as even that would not have come close to serving justice in this case. Unfortunately, the judge decided to impose a minimal sentence. The family of the victim left court today feeling that justice was not served.”
The DA also said Ottaviano’s sentence failed to send a deterrent message to others about the danger of impaired driving.
“No message was sent to the public regarding the dangers of driving while under the influence of marijuana,” Seaman said. “The defendant will be out (of custody) in four months, while this young girl and her family will deal with the repercussions for the rest of their lives.”
Falls Police Crash Investigation Unit detectives said Cox was behind the wheel on July 19, 2023, when her vehicle struck 11-year-old Nevaeh Quarantillo as she was riding her bicycle on Ferry Avenue.
Quarantillo was taken to Oishei Children’s Hospital after the crash where she was treated for multiple fractures to her shoulder blades, face, collar and pelvic bones and third-degree burns to her back, head and neck.
Family members previously said Nevaeh was deprived of oxygen to her brain for eight to 10 minutes while she was pinned under Cox’s car and first responders attempted to free her. She has continued to receive treatment for lingering health issues stemming from the incident.