Car Accident Case involving death and paralysis - what would you do?

[Ruskiegunlover]

No, actually, I WAS a different kid. Being insulin dependent since I was 8, and growing up in a household that I was almost removed from made me mature a lot faster then most of my peers. I have never done any drug (outside insulin), and have NEVER BEEN DRUNK. I do drink, but I have never gone to access.....Alcoholism runs in my family, and loosing a friend to a drunk didn't inspire me much to act like I was above the law and the lives of others. The most dangerous thing I ever did was drive fast in my 67 mustang fastback on a HIGHWAY, AT NIGHT. Raced a friend, at 2am, with NO ONE ELSE on the road. Had about 3 miles of open road, in a 4 lane divided highway. Still, probably the dumbest thing I probably ever did, but I still talked it out at a restuarant before hand, to BE as safe as possible with the friend (friend had a similiar mustang, wanted to race me).If I had maturity problems, it was co-dependency with girls from my issues with my psycho mother and step mother.

And does it matter? You want to make excuses for the incredibly stupid and CONSCIENCE DECISION that a 'kid' made, and try to get him off with less after he DESTROYED LIVES. Think the parents of the deceased and damaged will ever be the same? How will they afford to care for their children now? THEY LOST ONE, TO this 'poor' 'immature' kid who CHOSE to do something, and suffered the consequences. 2 years in jail is not a punishment.

It WAS a deliberate act, nonetheless, that the kid new DAMNED WELL was dangerous. HE DID SOMETHING STUPID AND DANGEROUS, AND HE NEW IT, NEW THERE WERE RISKS. Jesus, whats the difference then if he spun a smith and wesson's cyclinder, put it to another kids head, and pulled the trigger? THATS a dumb, dangerous, and conscience decision too.

We are failing as a society, because we feel sorry for the CRIMINALS AMONG US. We want to remove punishment and shame from bad decisions, not REALLY make someone pay, let them off after a few years, because we feel bad for how they feel. Good God, is it obvious to anyone else here that our society has no consequences anymore? For ANY bad decisions?

Pregnent: Abortion.
Broke: bankruptcy, or welfare
No insurance: uncle sugar will take care of your ills
Shot breaking into someones house: you sue the homeowner
Child molesting: YOU were molested, so its ok-you are a victim too (or a football coach)

What am I forgetting?
Screwed off in school?: Vision card
Get drunk and kill someone: a few years in mimimum security jail
Lazy: vision card

Remove consequences, and people no longer fear bad decisions. If you know society will be suckered in, feeling sorry for YOU instead of your victims, then why not?

The kid was not 10. He was not 5. He was 16. Old enough to drive, old enough to work. Old enough physically to have kids. He was old enough to know better, to understand the gravity of his decisions. And yet he STILL gambled, to have FUN, and destroyed lives.

You you forget who you should feel for? THINK of what the parents are going to deal with, from now on. THINK about it, because you sure don't seem to have.



Am I alone here?

[mriddick]

No, actually, I WAS a different kid. Being insulin dependent since I was 8, and growing up in a household that I was almost removed from made me mature a lot faster then most of my peers. I have never done any drug (outside insulin), and have NEVER BEEN DRUNK. I do drink, but I have never gone to access.....Alcoholism runs in my family, and loosing a friend to a drunk didn't inspire me much to act like I was above the law and the lives of others. The most dangerous thing I ever did was drive fast in my 67 mustang fastback on a HIGHWAY, AT NIGHT. Raced a friend, at 2am, with NO ONE ELSE on the road. Had about 3 miles of open road, in a 4 lane divided highway. Still, probably the dumbest thing I probably ever did, but I still talked it out at a restuarant before hand, to BE as safe as possible with the friend (friend had a similiar mustang, wanted to race me).If I had maturity problems, it was co-dependency with girls from my issues with my psycho mother and step mother.

And does it matter? You want to make excuses for the incredibly stupid and CONSCIENCE DECISION that a 'kid' made, and try to get him off with less after he DESTROYED LIVES. Think the parents of the deceased and damaged will ever be the same? How will they afford to care for their children now? THEY LOST ONE, TO this 'poor' 'immature' kid who CHOSE to do something, and suffered the consequences. 2 years in jail is not a punishment.

It WAS a deliberate act, nonetheless, that the kid new DAMNED WELL was dangerous. HE DID SOMETHING STUPID AND DANGEROUS, AND HE NEW IT, NEW THERE WERE RISKS. Jesus, whats the difference then if he spun a smith and wesson's cyclinder, put it to another kids head, and pulled the trigger? THATS a dumb, dangerous, and conscience decision too.

We are failing as a society, because we feel sorry for the CRIMINALS AMONG US. We want to remove punishment and shame from bad decisions, not REALLY make someone pay, let them off after a few years, because we feel bad for how they feel. Good God, is it obvious to anyone else here that our society has no consequences anymore? For ANY bad decisions?

Pregnent: Abortion.
Broke: bankruptcy, or welfare
No insurance: uncle sugar will take care of your ills
Shot breaking into someones house: you sue the homeowner
Child molesting: YOU were molested, so its ok-you are a victim too (or a football coach)

What am I forgetting?
Screwed off in school?: Vision card
Get drunk and kill someone: a few years in mimimum security jail
Lazy: vision card

Remove consequences, and people no longer fear bad decisions. If you know society will be suckered in, feeling sorry for YOU instead of your victims, then why not?

The kid was not 10. He was not 5. He was 16. Old enough to drive, old enough to work. Old enough physically to have kids. He was old enough to know better, to understand the gravity of his decisions. And yet he STILL gambled, to have FUN, and destroyed lives.

You you forget who you should feel for? THINK of what the parents are going to deal with, from now on. THINK about it, because you sure don't seem to have.



Am I alone here?

I think what Wart and I have posted is to the right of your view, in that you can say you're not alone in atleast a few thinking the kid would have to pay for his crimes.

[Ruskiegunlover]

So if one of the gang banger kids I teach knifes me and kills me in class, in the heat of anger, because I get on him too much to GET TO WORK, and my wife is widowed and alone, maybe my kids fatherless.....its all ok, and the kid should just do a little time (a couple years), because he's just immature and not capeable of understanding what he is doing? He just made a bad decision? Is that it? Teens should just be given MORE leeway, because they are 'Immature' or emotionally unable to understand what they are doing?

This kid took an unacceptable risk, did narcotics while driving and speeding for FUN, took lives and destroyed others, and we are just supposed to say 'oh well, poor kid was just immature, didn't really understand what he was doing.....'

[NAPOTS]

75 yeas sounds like too much for a kid that made a mistake. Yes a big one and he should definately be punished for it and I don't think 2 years is enough.

I'd say if he can be a model prisoner and get a college degree let him out when he is in his 30s and give him a second chance.

[Ruskiegunlover]

Only when the punishment for crimes matches the seriousness and PERMANENCE of the crime will we see a lower crime rate in this country. Let people off, make excuses for them, and we'll see much more of this.

[LAGC]

We are failing as a society, because we feel sorry for the CRIMINALS AMONG US. We want to remove punishment and shame from bad decisions, not REALLY make someone pay, let them off after a few years, because we feel bad for how they feel. Good God, is it obvious to anyone else here that our society has no consequences anymore? For ANY bad decisions?
..
..
Only when the punishment for crimes matches the seriousness and PERMANENCE of the crime will we see a lower crime rate in this country. Let people off, make excuses for them, and we'll see much more of this.

I don't know, Ruskie, I think we really have to weigh the punitive value of sentencing with the rehabilitative. I mean, how likely do you think this 16-year-old kid is going to do such a dumb thing as huff-and-drive again, now that he's seen what his behavior has wrought?

Just the fact that this 16-year-old kid is going to be locked up for awhile for his stupidity should be a wake-up call to others. I don't think we need to take away his entire life as well and make tax-payers pay for his upkeep when, by all accounts, he is a good student and will likely be a productive citizen when he grows up.

This incident should be a learning opportunity for kids in general, hopefully its talked about in all the schools. The dangers of driving impaired. A lot of people don't realize that, just like guns, cars are merely tools. And deadly weapons when handled irresponsibly. I don't think you need to lock this 16-year-old up for Life just to bring that point home.

[Mark Ducati]

Here's a FB page from the family: http://www.facebook.com/HannahsHelpers?sk=info

And this is the kid that killed them (I think its the kid anyways, same name "Jacob Lee", same county "Fannin", same age as reported in the paper):
http://www.facebook.com/jacobwaynelee

[Solidus-snake]

This incident should be a learning opportunity for kids in general, hopefully its talked about in all the schools. The dangers of driving impaired. A lot of people don't realize that, just like guns, cars are merely tools. And deadly weapons when handled irresponsibly. I don't think you need to lock this 16-year-old up for Life just to bring that point home.

And just how many people have to die for this "learning opportunity" and to "bring the point home" before we finally make people pay for their crimes?

I was 16 not very long ago at all and I can guarandamntee you that I would not EVER have got behind the wheel while impaired, I knew exactly what could happen when doing stupid, dumbass stunts and to this day I have never and will never drive while impaired.I saw classmates DIE doing stupid shit and im pretty sure times havent changed that much.

So it looks a lot to me like its not just "a simple mistake" or "bad judgement". At 16, you are responsible enough to drive and therefore responsible for your actions. Let him be tried as an adult and sentence him to 20 something years. His personal story of wasting his life in jail for his actions would "bring the point home" alot better than running free.

[Mark Ducati]

FWIW, I've been saving all the news paper articles on this case, other drug/dui stuff that happens locally... I'm making a scrapbook, that I plan to give to my now 4 and 8 year old kids before they start driving later in life. This scrapbook, will be required reading for them on an annual basis.

[L1A1Rocker]

This may sound harsh but that kid needs to be removed from the gene pool and society in general for as long as possible.

Let's say he does his two years in juvee. When he gets out he will not be going to college. He will hook up with the friends he made in juvee. He will drink, do drugs, steal to support his habit, and knock up girls that he get high with.

He will not support the children he makes, or the girl(s) he knocks up. But rather, the mama(s) becomes a welfare dependent raising more welfare dependents.

I'm over 40 years old and can tell you about some of my high school "friends". The ones that smoked the occasional joint for the most part have become well adjusted adults that contribute to society. The ones that used chemicals to get high with (huffing paint or freon etc.) have TO A ONE, been nothing but a burden to our society. Theft, welfare dependents making more welfare dependents and death at the cost of the tax payer is all they've become.

I know it sounds harsh but this kids life path has already been set for him. Get him out of society before he does any more harm.

[Ruskiegunlover]

I CAN tell you at least one lesson a lot of kids will take away from it if he GETS OFF with just a year or so in juvie: that the punishment for this is not that bad, and that its a blast to drive impaired, and that if you have an accident people will just feel sorry for you, and you'll get MAYBE just a year or so, maybe less, in trouble.

I think the lesson kids would get if they THREW HIS ASS IN JAIL FOR 75 YEARS, and he had to occassionally do video-feed talks with high schools, would be that if you fuck up and act like a child and hurt someone the consequences are REAL. I think kids, at least some, might just GET that life is real, that other people are REAL, and that if they do dumb shit they WILL BE PUNISHED for it.

You guys all know that I teach right? That I work with kids every day, and see how many don't seem to connect consequences with their actions, right? Because they are so used to people feeling sorry for them, having pity on them, making excuses for them, that getting in trouble is really no big deal anymore. Kids today have enough shoulders to cry on, enough social programs to get on, that they can drop out of school and then walk away from their pregnent girlfriend, or just have an abortion, get a vision card, or get on disability at 17 because they have FIBRO MIALGIA (even though they can screw).....teach them that they can cry and say 'I'm sorry' for ANYTHING THEY DO, and all you will see is a LOT MORE OF THE BEHAVIOR FROM THEM AND OTHER KIDS.

[abpt1]

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[ltorlo64]

What's he actually being charged with? Murder?

Sounds like Vehicular Manslaughter at best, but a quick search showed that Georgia doesn't have a statute for that. The closest thing seems to be Involuntary Manslaughter, which carries a prison term of 1 to 10 years.

2 years in juvy seems like a pretty light sentence for taking someone's life. At least if he was prosecuted in adult court he could be put on probation for awhile, to at least help support the crippled kid through restitution until he turns 18.

I mean, insurance probably paid for the immediate hospital expenses, but its going to cost a lot of time and money to care for a quadriplegic, even if he gets on Social Security Disability. The 16-year-old should help pay back the Social Security Trust fund if nothing else.

But he shouldn't have to forfeit his whole life due to a stupid mistake. We all did dumb things as teenagers.

My only disagreement with this is the last statement. I person did forfeit their life and another 3 had their lives irreversably changed by a stupid mistake. Not sure 2 years in juvenile detention is enough and I am certain that 75 years is too much.

[Ruskiegunlover]

unless it was YOU and YOUR family. Then you just might want 75 years.....

[mriddick]

In state prison 75 years is never 75 years. Those of you saying you'd want more then 2 but less then 75 should just go along with the 75 since the requirements for getting out early would mean he'd have to show some modest amount of self improvement (hopefully if it works right). Although in truth all 75 years would just mean is if he keeps out of trouble he'd be out in 7 regardless of any "improvement"... Now if talking federal prison he might actually have a chance of serving the 75, but I'm quite sure we're talking state.

That said I'd still rather he be out in 2 so I could kill him (if talking my kids or grandkids)