The drunk driver who killed popular bartender Joshua Gilliland has been sentenced to 22 years to life in prison after a jury convicted him of second-degree murder.
Before a packed courtroom, Brandon Allen Janik, 38, of North Park, stood handcuffed in jail clothes before the audience on Jan. 24 and apologized for his “awful conduct.”
Gilliland, 47, had worked at the bar Cheers for 20 years and was struck on June 10, 2023 near the corner of El Cajon Boulevard and Park Boulevard. The jury got to view camera surveillance that showed Janik’s BMW hitting Gilliland in a crosswalk at 10:45 p.m.
In the audience were the victim’s two sisters and their families, a former Cheers bartender, and many others. On the other side, were members of Janik’s own family including his two daughters.
“It’s clear he was widely loved by many. I take full and sole responsibility,” said Janik. “My horrific actions continue to make me sick. I don’t know who that person was.”
“Because of me, Mr. Gilliland is gone from this Earth forever. I failed Mr. Gilliland and everyone here with my actions,” said Janik.
Looking at his two teenage daughters in the audience, Janik said, “I set a horrible example as a father. I failed horribly at my most basic job as a father.” The daughters both responded by weeping.
“I vow to tell my story to whoever listens about the danger of drinking and driving,” said Janik. “I’m going to prison because that’s what I deserve.”
“Josh’s life mattered,” said Patrick Hughes, his brother-in-law, who asked San Diego Superior Court Judge Laura Parsky for the maximum sentence.
“All of this was entirely avoidable. My sister and I should never have had to bury our little brother,” said Lindy May. “Mr. Janik drove when he could have walked.”
According to testimony, a couple found Janik asleep behind the wheel in a traffic lane in North Park. They pulled him out of the car, and Janik woke up, thanking them for doing that because he had a previous DUI conviction.
The couple called 911 before pulling him out of the car, but police were backed up with other calls, so a fire truck with paramedics showed. Janik told the firefighters he would walk home, as the couple had parked his car. However, when the paramedics and the couple left, Janik got into his car and minutes later he fatally struck Gilliland.
“He was the best son a parent could ever ask for,” said May, his sister. “He was the best uncle, the best friend somone could ever ask for.”
“The defendant took every opportunity to hide, conceal, manipulate, and lie to avoid responsibility,” said Deputy District Attorney Hailey Williams.
Williams asked that Janik be sentenced to 15 years to life for the second-degree murder plus eight years consecutively for his conviction on three counts of submitting false insurance claims to repair the damages on his vehicle.
Janik’s attorney, Justin Murphy, had argued there was no blood/alcohol test ever taken on Janik so there was an open question as to whether he was intoxicated when Gilliland was struck. Janik was not arrested until three months after the incident.
Parsky imposed one year less than the maximum sentence and added seven years for the insurance fraud to run consecutive to the 15 years to life term to a total of 22 years to life in prison.
She gave him credit for spending 508 days in jail and ordered him to pay $800 to the insurance company for damages to his BMW. She also fined him $10,490, which can be taken from prison wages.
CAPTION: People participated in the “Finish Josh’s walk” to note when bartender Joshua Gilliland was struck and killed by a hit and run driver. (Photo courtesy 10News)
