Grandpa killed in high-speed wreck, Hawaii officials say. ‘I will always love you’
A man accused of slamming into and “crushing” another vehicle in a deadly wreck in Hawaii is headed to prison, prosecutors said.
Keola James DeCosta, 43, of Lawai, was sentenced to 15 years behind bars in the January 2024 wreck on the island of Kauai that killed 69-year-old Joseph Fernandez and seriously hurt his adult granddaughter, Kauai Prosecuting Attorney Rebecca Like said in a Feb. 19 news release.
McClatchy News reached out to DeCosta’s attorney Feb. 20 and was awaiting a response.
DeCosta was driving a pickup truck at about 90 mph when he rear-ended a smaller sedan, “crushing it,” officials said.
Fernandez, who’d just got his 25-year-old granddaughter from her job at a shopping area, “died immediately upon impact,” officials said.
The granddaughter was badly hurt, suffering long-term brain damage, punctured lungs and broken ribs, according to officials.
“These injuries have resulted in ongoing struggles, including severe memory loss,” the granddaughter, whose name was not included, said in the release.
She added that, “every day, I face the reality of what I will never remember, the laughter and love that my papa would have provided.”
Byron Fernandez, who identified himself as Fernandez’s son, wrote on Facebook that “my heart ripped out of my chest” at sentencing “because there is no price that (DeCosta) could have paid that would be sufficient for the life he has taken, and trauma that he has caused to both families involved.”
“I pray forgiveness in our hearts,” he said on Facebook. “May you rest with the lord of lords, and thank you for all you have done in my life Dad. I will always love you!”
In the release, Like said “our hearts go out to Mr. Fernandez’s family and to his granddaughter. The reckless actions of Mr. DeCosta have done irreparable harm to this family.”
DeCosta’s sentencing came after he pleaded no contest to first-degree negligent homicide and first-degree negligent injury, prosecutors said.
Along with the prison sentence, DeCosta was ordered to pay restitution and his license was permanently revoked, according to prosecutors.
Lawai is about an 11-mile drive northeast to Lihue.
This story was originally published February 20, 2025 at 2:25 PM with the headline "Grandpa killed in high-speed wreck, Hawaii officials say. ‘I will always love you’."
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