Former Paso Robles corrections officer who fled injury DUI crash avoids prison
A former California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation officer who admitted to driving under the influence and fleeing the scene of a crash that injured a married couple was sentenced to less than a year in jail and five years of probation.
Paso Robles resident John Joseph Cicone, 51, entered an open plea on Sept. 25 to all the charges against him — driving under the influence causing injury, driving under the influence with a blood alcohol content above .08 causing injury and hit-and-run causing injury. He also admitted to all of the sentencing enhancements, which included the crime affecting multiple victims and inflicting great bodily injury.
An open plea means Cicone admitted to the charges without negotiating a deal with the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office.
Court records show San Luis Obispo Superior Court Judge Barry LaBarbera indicated he planned to sentence Cicone to 270 days in County Jail and five years of probation following Cicone’s plea, despite the District Attorney’s Office opposing any sentence that did not include state prison.
As a result, Cicone was sentenced to 270 days in County Jail and five years of probation. Cicone was ordered to surrender in court to jail custody on Oct. 30.
San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow said in a news release that the sentencing was “very disappointing.”
“This defendant who served the public in a law enforcement position owed a special duty to protect and care for the victims of his selfish criminal conduct,” Dow said. “I hope that Mr. Cicone takes the grace he was given by the Judge as motivation to never again drink alcohol and drive a motor vehicle. I hope he will become an outspoken advocate for sober driving for the rest of his life. His conduct could have easily taken the lives of this married couple who were driving carefully and expecting to arrive home safely.”
Former CDCR officer said he texted CHP ‘buddy’ after crash, DA says
Cicone was employed as a corrections officer with CDCR when he drove drunk on June 22, 2024, the DA’s Office said in a news release.
That evening, the release said, he crashed his vehicle into another, which was occupied by a married couple, at the intersection of Highway 101 and San Marcos Road in rural Paso Robles. After the crash, one of the victims was unconscious while the other told Cicone he was “not OK.”
“Rather than stay, call for help and administer aid to the injured individuals, Cicone fled on foot and walked to his residence leaving his damaged vehicle and the victims at the collision scene,” the District Attorney’s Office said.
A bystander stopped and questioned Cicone as he left the scene, and Cicone only responded “no” and did not state where he was going, the release said.
That bystander called 911, and the California Highway Patrol arrived at around 10:55 p.m. Both victims sustained very serious injuries and were transported to Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center while three San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office units failed to locate any person associated with the truck that caused the collision, the release said.
Then, at around 11:05 p.m., Cicone called 911 and reported someone had hit his truck as he tried to turn into his driveway on San Marcos Road, an account that did not match the physical evidence, collision investigation or the victim’s statement, the District Attorney’s Office said.
Cicone did not answer repeated questions about the crash, hung up the phone and did not answer repeated calls from law enforcement, the release said.
CHP officers found Cicone at his home around 1 a.m. and conducted a DUI investigation.
Cicone told CHP officers that he was the primary driver of the truck and believed the crash occurred around 10:30 p.m., the release said.
Cicone told officers he texted a CHP “buddy” after the crash, but when officers asked to see the message, Cicone said he deleted it, the release said.
Cicone reported he drank one beer at a Paso Robles bar then drove his friend home, saying the crash occurred after he dropped off his friend. He also said he drank half a beer once he got back to his residence before he fell asleep.
CHP officers reported that they could smell alcohol emitting from Cicone’ s breath, the release said. Cicone’s eyes were also red and watery, CHP reported.
A breathalyzer test found Cicone had a blood alcohol content of .08 at around 1:45 a.m. — three hours after the crash, the release said.
Receipts and surveillance footage from the Paso Robles bar showed Cicone drank at least six beers in a two-hour period prior to the crash, the District Attorney’s Office said.
“Additionally, not once in his interview that evening did he ever ask about the condition or well-being of the victims, although he did express that he had just paid off his truck,” the District Attorney’s Office said.
Cicone retired from the California Department of Corrections after an 18-year career at some point after the accident, the release said.
Victims’ lives ‘forever changed’ by accident, they say
In a statement filed in court and read aloud prior to Cicone’s sentencing, one of the victims said her and her husband’s lives were “forever changed” the night of the crash.
She and her husband sustained serious injuries that required hospitalization, back and wrist braces and physical and occupational therapy, along with causing major limitations on their ability to work, she said. Her husband’s back also required surgery, she said.
Her husband could not shower or dress himself for three months, she said, having to wear a back brace at all times. She said one wrong movement in those three months could have caused paralysis for her husband due to his spine’s instability.
“While we have now healed and returned to normal activity, the bones of our spines and our wrists will never be the same,” she said. “As individual people, we will never be the same.”
She said her and her husband’s “greatest desire” was that the case and Cocine’s sentencing would help deter drunk driving.
The woman said she and her husband are grateful that they are alive, for their medical care and for their bodies’ ability to heal.
She said she was nervous to see Cicone for the first time in court because she did not remember seeing him the night of the crash.
Rather than feeling anger, fear or resentment toward him, she “was filled with peace.”
“I felt I was able to see you as a person and have good feelings toward you,” she told him in court. “I know that his was a gift of God for me to be able to feel that way.”
She said she hopes Cicone can heal with help from those who love and care about him.
“We know we cannot control the choices of others, but we would hope that you choose not to drink and drive again and that you would help others to avoid drinking and driving as well,” she told him.
