Statement of the Pinal County Attorney’s Office on the State v. Robert Van Brakel  and State v. Travis Aronica cases

 

The Maricopa County Superior Court, on Tuesday, May 18, 2010 sentenced Robert Van Brakel to 5 years in prison for his responsibility in the death of Calvin Holman, 78, on Dec. 28, 2007.

 

Mr. Holman, a retired businessman from Paradise Valley, served in the Arizona Legislature from 1975 to 1985. He died in an automobile crash in which Van Brakel and another driver Travis Aronica smashed into Holman’s car on Scottsdale Road about mid-day.

 

Van Brakel, 45, plead guilty to manslaughter.

On the same day the court sentenced Travis Aronica, 28, to:

 

- three years supervised probation with standard terms and 60 days deferred jail on count 1.

- three years probation with standard terms on count 2 of the indictment.

 

The above sentence was based on Aronica’s guilty plea on two counts of endangerment. Aronica also agreed to testify for the State as part of his plea. 

 

There will be a review of Aronica’s jail term on July 8th.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Timothy Ryan sentenced both men.

 

The Pinal County Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case because of a conflict of interest at the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office. James P. Walsh, Pinal County Attorney said, “It’s a tragedy that Cal Holman was taken from his family by the thoughtless actions of these two men.”