Killed one of my former students Friday. She was an incredible young lady. She was the news anchor for our middle school and my top student. I can picture her so clearly in my first classroom. This makes two kids I have a school connection with who have died in the past six months. f***. She was at her mailbox getting the mail for her family after school.

Damn.

 

My condolences Tex.

 

Hopefully he rots in prison.

The leniency of DUI laws in America is ridiculous.

The leniency of DUI laws in America is ridiculous.

Only if you have money. Be a non-celebrity or under-6- figure earner and be prepared for jail time if a death occurs, or serious bucks shelled out if not. And even if you are found innocent, you still have to spend thousands of bucks just to prove it. Now there was a time now that long ago when you would be correct. You often heard of people with several DUIs. But now it is a money grab by all. Suspension of license, mandatory classes to get it back, even if found not guilty, which YOU have to pay for and the state gets a cut, your lawyer fees, extra costs to reinstate your license, and if you are guilty and have to have the breath-thing, of course you pay for that, too, from a state authorized company, of which the state also gets a piece of, and so on. And local police departments get grant money for bringing in a certain amount of drunk drivers, so the cops aren't interested in letting people go anymore, they get more cash the more they bring in! That is why they even bend the rules in reverse now. Smell like beer but not drunk? Too bad, getting arrested anyway, tell it to the judge, after you spend thousands and lose your license in the meantime.

 

And Tex, I am sorry to hear about your student. it does suck.

That's awful. Sorry to hear that.

Only if you have money. Be a non-celebrity or under-6- figure earner and be prepared for jail time if a death occurs, or serious bucks shelled out if not. And even if you are found innocent, you still have to spend thousands of bucks just to prove it. Now there was a time now that long ago when you would be correct. You often heard of people with several DUIs. But now it is a money grab by all. Suspension of license, mandatory classes to get it back, even if found not guilty, which YOU have to pay for and the state gets a cut, your lawyer fees, extra costs to reinstate your license, and if you are guilty and have to have the breath-thing, of course you pay for that, too, from a state authorized company, of which the state also gets a piece of, and so on. And local police departments get grant money for bringing in a certain amount of drunk drivers, so the cops aren't interested in letting people go anymore, they get more cash the more they bring in! That is why they even bend the rules in reverse now. Smell like beer but not drunk? Too bad, getting arrested anyway, tell it to the judge, after you spend thousands and lose your license in the meantime.

 

And Tex, I am sorry to hear about your student. it does suck.

 

My brother got a DUI in Colorado. Totally deserved it. I had to move in with him over the summer, get a part time job, and chauffeur him to work everyday so that he could keep his job. I then drove him to alcohol education classes, mandated by the state, every day after work. I would then drive him to a clinic at least 4 times a week to breathalyze. He then had to pay 100 dollars per month to keep a breathalyzer installed in his vehicle for 2 years. He cannot drive any vehicle that lacks a breathalyzer. He lost all driving privileges for 60 days, could drive with the breathalyzer after that. He still has to go to breathalyze at a clinic at random.

 

He was a less nice brother and/or a worse job away from basically losing everything.

 

Second offense and he would never drive again, likely some short jail time.

My brother got a DUI in Colorado. Totally deserved it. I had to move in with him over the summer, get a part time job, and chauffeur him to work everyday so that he could keep his job. I then drove him to alcohol education classes, mandated by the state, every day after work. I would then drive him to a clinic at least 4 times a week to breathalyze. He then had to pay 100 dollars per month to keep a breathalyzer installed in his vehicle for 2 years. He cannot drive any vehicle that lacks a breathalyzer. He lost all driving privileges for 60 days, could drive with the breathalyzer after that. He still has to go to breathalyze at a clinic at random.

 

He was a less nice brother and/or a worse job away from basically losing everything.

 

Second offense and he would never drive again, likely some short jail time.

 

You sir are a fantastic brother.

I had two friends killed by a drunk driver my junior year in HS. It was so surreal and confusing. Lots of students full of anger as they were two of the more popular and bright kids in the school.

REAL sorry to hear that Tex. There are no words of comfort to express......because when something like this happens, there is really nothing that can comfort. All that any of us can do is give you our support.....and to say Thank You for everything that you did on YOUR part as to how you influenced her life in the ways that God has taught you and has gifted you with. I wish you the best Tex as I know that your heart is pretty heavy over this horrible loss. Take it one day at a time my friend.

I lost a college roommate that way. It is just such an empty and angry feeling.

Only if you have money. Be a non-celebrity or under-6- figure earner and be prepared for jail time if a death occurs, or serious bucks shelled out if not. And even if you are found innocent, you still have to spend thousands of bucks just to prove it. Now there was a time now that long ago when you would be correct. You often heard of people with several DUIs. But now it is a money grab by all. Suspension of license, mandatory classes to get it back, even if found not guilty, which YOU have to pay for and the state gets a cut, your lawyer fees, extra costs to reinstate your license, and if you are guilty and have to have the breath-thing, of course you pay for that, too, from a state authorized company, of which the state also gets a piece of, and so on. And local police departments get grant money for bringing in a certain amount of drunk drivers, so the cops aren't interested in letting people go anymore, they get more cash the more they bring in! That is why they even bend the rules in reverse now. Smell like beer but not drunk? Too bad, getting arrested anyway, tell it to the judge, after you spend thousands and lose your license in the meantime.

 

And Tex, I am sorry to hear about your student. it does suck.

 

Depends on the state, but a lot of states' drunk driving laws are too lenient even for people who don't have money. A big part of it is all the red tape and hoops you have to go to to prove somebody was over the legal limit. A lot of drunk drivers get off using the "Ryan Braun" defense.

 

And Tex, I'm also very sorry for your loss.

Edited May 6, 201312 yr by HickoryHuskers

Depends on the state, but a lot of states' drunk driving laws are too lenient even for people who don't have money. A big part of it is all the red tape and hoops you have to go to to prove somebody was over the legal limit. A lot of drunk drivers get off using the "Ryan Braun" defense.

 

And Tex, I'm also very sorry for your loss.

 

I live in Wisconsin and received an OWI about 5 years ago. I was pulled over along the side of the road because I had dropped my phone between the seat and the door and wanted to retrieve it. Cop happened to drive by and stopped to see why I was pulled over there (it was out in the country). I passed the sobriety test, but blew over the limit so I got arrested. We have the most lenient laws of any state in Wisconsin. We are the only state where a first offense is not a crime. They do not even put you in a cell, you just have to have somebody sober sign for you. The ticket itself is around $800, you have to pay $200 for an alcohol assessment, $200 for a class if they deem you not an alcoholic (you have to go to counseling if they feel you have a drinking problem) and then my insurance went up about $40/month for a year. You also lose your license for 7 months, but are granted an occupational license to drive to work. Total it cost me about $1700 or so. They have changed slightly since I received mine. Now, if you blow over .15 you have to have a blow device in your car for a year. They are so lenient here to the point where it really doesn't stop people from driving drunk until they get their first offense. More than half of my friends have had at least one offense.

Edited May 6, 201312 yr by lasttriptotulsa

I had two friends killed by a drunk driver my junior year in HS. It was so surreal and confusing. Lots of students full of anger as they were two of the more popular and bright kids in the school.

 

I lost a couple of friends due to drunk driving during and just after HS. Unfortunately, my friends were the drunk drivers.

2:30 PM. The M-Fer was drunk at 2:30 PM. And she was home because there were rumours of pendign gang trouble at the school and her mom came to get her. She was set to graduate early. She finished high school in three years.

Sorry to hear about this Tex.

In the early 70's my uncle and cousin were killed in a head-on accident with a drunk. My uncle (my dad's only sibling) had just retired and took his son on a fishing trip to Arkansas. They were killed there. Shortly after this happened my dad and I were driving home from work one night and were behind a guy swerving all over the road. I could sense my dad's rage. After a stop-light my dad cut the guy off and forced him to pull over. My dad got out of the car and walked to the drunk's car. He took the guy's keys and we drove to the Elmhurst police station where my dad went in and handed over they keys and told them where the guy's car was. I remember being quite surprised that my dad didn't get in trouble.

The driver was charged with intoxicated manslaughter. The family does not have money for a funeral. We're having a fundraiser. I can't imagine the pain of not being able to bury your child. I get all choked up just thinking about it.

Damn.

 

My condolences Tex.

 

Hopefully he rots in prison.

 

Damn.

 

My condolences Tex.

 

Hopefully he rots in prison.

 

That is horrible. My heart goes out to the family and any who have lost a loved on needlessly and senselessly to a drunk driver.

The driver was charged with intoxicated manslaughter. The family does not have money for a funeral. We're having a fundraiser. I can't imagine the pain of not being able to bury your child. I get all choked up just thinking about it.

 

I really hope the driver had an insurance policy with some decent coverage.

Awful Tex. Condolences.

So this is the driver's second DUI arrest. He had one in 2010 that he still has not gone to court for. In my small county there are over 4,500 pending DUI cases. They just can't get to them all.

Sorry to hear this, Tex. I seem to hear it way too much. Why does the drunk driver always seem to walk away alive and the victims die?!

So this is the driver's second DUI arrest. He had one in 2010 that he still has not gone to court for. In my small county there are over 4,500 pending DUI cases. They just can't get to them all.

 

My office prosecutes first offense OWI in WI and reading that makes no sense to me. I really don't think there can be that many cases for DUI in a small county.

The driver was charged with intoxicated manslaughter. The family does not have money for a funeral. We're having a fundraiser. I can't imagine the pain of not being able to bury your child. I get all choked up just thinking about it.

 

I was talking to a lawyer who had a sentencing hearing on that charges for killing his best friend while drunk driving. I think he got 3 years in prison. No priors either.