People as far south as San Diego and all over the west coast were disturbed by the unsettling story of a drunk driver who plowed into a crowd of pedestrians near a Seattle middle school last month.
An elderly couple — who had just moved to Seattle from the Midwest to be closer to their grandkids — was killed at the scene of the car accident. Two other people, a 33-year-old woman and a 10-day-old infant, were also rushed to the hospital with critical injuries.
The city was outraged to learn that the driver was a 50-year-old man who had been arrested for driving under the influence twice in the last four months. One of those incidents included a hit-and-run accident in December. He was still driving the same pickup truck when he crashed into the crowd of innocent victims in the fatal accident, only months after committing at least two serious motor vehicle violations. It is unclear whether or not the man’s license was suspended at the time of the crash.
Car accidents are a daily occurrence all over the country, but few have this kind of jarring impact. “This is obviously a very tragic situation, it’s not very normal that we have this level of folks who are victimized in this way,” said a police deputy after the crash.
Shock and grief are emotions that accompany any tragic car accident, but when the offender is someone who has the kind of track record of DUIs that this man had, people also want answers and retribution. The man will have to pay for his crimes, but the innocent victims and their families should also be awarded their fair share of damages for the grievous injuries, both emotional and physical, and the loss of irreplaceable people in their lives.
Source: San Diego 6, “Grandparents who moved to help killed in crash,” March 26, 2013
