Man pleads guilty in fatal Stonington hit-and-run

A former Stonington man charged in connection with a hit-and-run crash that claimed the life of a well-liked high school custodian last year has opted for a two-year prison sentence and five years of probation over a jury trial.Jonathan K. Olsen, 42, of Mystic, who police said struck and killed 69-year-old bicyclist Gary Piver on March 6, 2023, changed his plea to guilty on Friday in New London Superior Court.The plea was part of an agreement with state prosecutors. Olsen pleaded guilty to evading the scene of an accident that results in death or serious injury, a felony charge that carries a minimum of two years in prison and a maximum of 20.Sentencing is set for Sept. 27 in New London Superior Court.Gary Piver's younger brother, Jon Piver of Stonington, attended Friday's court proceedings with family and friends to push for a stiffer sentence. Jon Piver said two years in prison is not commensurate with the severity of the crime that led to his brother's death. He said he was also frustrated by Olsen's apparent lack of remorse. "He seems very smug, like he's going to get away with something," Piver said outside of the courtroom.A police investigation determined that Olsen had struck Piver as Piver was riding his bicycle along Route 1, on the Anguilla Brook Bridge, at 10:44 p.m. on March 6, 2023.An accident reconstruction team determined that after a head-on collision with Olsen's Toyota 4-Runner, the bicycle was drawn under the vehicle, driven over and left on the west side of Anguilla Brook Bridge in the center of the westbound lane. Piver was thrown over a guardrail and into a grassy area on the side of the road where he was discovered by police that night.Police allege that Olsen should have stopped and rendered aid to Piver. Instead, police said, Olsen drove home, switched vehicles and tried to return to the scene of the crash. Police were already attending to Piver at the scene of the crash by the time police said Olsen returned and Olsen turned around, police said. Jon Piver, when addressing the court on Friday, asked why Olsen had gone back to the scene."For what reason? To offer help? To call an ambulance? To actually care about my brother's life that he took?" Piver questioned."The defendant offered no type of assistance. He could have walked to the police station from the crash scene and arranged to get help," Piver said. "The defendant has shown irresponsibility, poor judgment and a total lack of wanting to take accountability for his actions." Police said there were bloodied parts from Olsen's vehicle left at the scene of the crash, which led police to Olsen's Toyota 4-Runner. Seized as evidence, the 4-Runner had sustained heavy front end damage to the passenger side and a shattered windshield.When police visited Olsen for questioning two days after the fatal crash, police said Olsen declined to answer questions and had his attorney on speaker on his phone. Olsen was arrested on June 5, 2023, three months after the crash. Police also reviewed video surveillance footage and conducted interviews to track Olsen's movements on the night of the crash. Police allege Olsen had consumed multiple drinks both at Main Street Pizza and United Theatre in Westerly prior to the crash.Police tracked down a witness who remembered seeing a man fitting Piver's description wearing a headlamp and riding his bicycle in the travel lane of Route 1. Piver had visited the Handlebar Cafe near Stonington High School prior to the crash. New London Superior Court Judge John Newson on Friday asked Olsen a series of questions about his decision to accept the state's offer. Newson also acknowledged that Olsen's attorney, Jessica Kordas, plans to argue that a change in state law last year has eliminated the mandatory minimum of two years in prison for the evading charge. Newson, however, said it is a longstanding rule that the law in effect at the time someone is charged is the law used for sentencing. Addressing a group friends and family of Gary Piver in the courtroom, Newson said he understood that the plea agreement was unlikely to appease those looking for a harsher sentence. He said there are likely to be factors in the case that barred prosecutors from seeking more severe charges. Newson said the arrest warrant prepared by Stonington police tells just one side of the story, "the state's side of the story."Newson additionally denied a request to raise bond for Olsen, citing his lack of any criminal history and participation in previous court proceedings, among other factors. Olsen has remained free on a $100,000 bond since his arrest. g.smith@theday.com