Sand Springs Teen Charged In Deadly Crash Released To Family For Rehabilitation

A 17-year-old Sand Springs girl who drove high on marijuana, crashed and killed her three friends is going home with her family on Tuesday.

Sirrah Mathews pleaded guilty to the crash that killed Ethan Gibson, Cyra Saner and Kylee Weaver last September.

The Office of Juvenile Affairs suggested she be sent home to be rehabilitated, and the judge approved it.

The victims' families and the district attorney said they are not happy with the sentence.

District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler said this case is one of the top five most frustrating cases of his 35-year career.

He said Matthews is being treated as if she stole something form Walmart, not someone who killed three people.

The victims’ families are outraged and don't feel they got any justice.

Mathews will be placed in her grandparents' home as part of her treatment plan.

No alcohol or drugs including medical marijuana are allowed in the home, she's not allowed to drive, she will have frequent random drug tests, she will have to wear an ankle monitor, and has an 8 p.m. curfew seven days a week.

The victims’ families knew Mathews wouldn't be sent to jail or prison, but they hoped she'd be sent to a facility for treatment, not go home with her family.

After Mathews pleaded guilty as a youthful offender, she was handed over to the Office of Juvenile Affairs to create a treatment plan for her.

OJA recommended in-home placement and said they felt that was the plan that would provide rehabilitation for Mathews.

Kunzweiler said it's incredible the OJA thinks placing Mathews back in the environment that condoned her behavior would somehow help her.

"It very much ticks me off," said Kori Fletcher, a victim's mother. "That's what it feels like. It feels like she got a slap on the wrist, and not. This wasn't about a punishment. It was supposed to be helping her, and I don't feel that what they've decided is going to help her. I don't. I don't feel that at all."

Kunzweiler said he doesn't think this plan is safe for the community or Mathews and sends a terrible message to other kids her age.

"The recommendation to the court was to place this person back in their home for killing three people. I mean, I can't even imagine doing that for killing one person. I mean that's the whole point of why OJA exists," Kunzweiler said.

The judge said he would have made a different decision if it was up to him but said he didn’t have the legal authority to overrule OJA’s plan and place Mathews in a facility.

Sirrah Mathews' lead attorney provided the following statement to News On 6:

“This is one of those cases that can make the word justice almost seem like a made-up word. There’s nothing but sadness everywhere. These kids were all friends and they loved each other. Ever since I met my client Sirrah over a year ago, there has not been a single conversation that I’ve had with her, even in private, where she wasn’t in tears. And I cannot imagine everything that the other families are going through. As a father myself, I cannot imagine. I don’t know what the path to closure looks like in a case like this. But I do hope that now that everything is finalized and done, that the path to closure can at least begin for everybody involved.”