I have pictures of the girl who hit Stephen with her car. For now, until she's convicted, I have to refer to her as the ALLEGED drunk driver, since we're still waiting on her tox results to come in. It has been 5 weeks since the accident. We have a prosecutor assigned to the case and now we're just waiting on a preliminary hearing to be scheduled. We're told it could be as long as 6 months from now, and even that's considered "quick." So it could be longer. The waiting is the hardest part. I can't wait to go to court and see how this all plays out. I will be there every time. I will let everyone know the court dates if you all want to go.
I'm not going to write the girl's name, but you can at least see what she looks like. I'm not going to say anything about her. I don't want to hurt the case at all. I may even be pushing it a little by even posting this blog. But if any of you are like me, you need a face to put with the action. I can say that she is only 20 years old...barely 20. She turned 20 just about 2 weeks before the accident.
1 comment:
I also lost my younger brother to a drunk driver.
Although it has been several years since he departed this world, the pain is still fresh.
Is it easier now?
Yes, it does get easier with time of course, but there is always something there to remind you.
The date he ws born, the date he was killed, holidays, or when you see that person or image that reminds you of him.
Somtimes I will cry when a movie or a song sparks a memory of his life.
Unlike the driver involved in Nicole's brothers death, the driver that killed my brother was killed too.
The driver was headed the wrong way on US Highway 1.
It was around 11:30 at night and the drunk driver's lights were off.
He was driving over 100 miles an hour, law enforcememnt told us.
He rounded a curve and my brother never saw the crash coming.
Although he was wearing a seat belt, the impact was such that the steering wheel still crushed him.
My brothers car didn't have an air bag, but the force was so great that I wonder if that would have saved him anyhow.
He had a 15 year old passenger that lived because the impact was greater on the driver's side.
Jeff had a rough time though and spent many days recovering, but Jeff is now a husband, and the father of a little girl.
My brother was only 19 when he was killed and he had many friends.
There was over 500 people at his funeral and they all coundn't fit into the church that my brother and all of our family attended at the time.
There were a couple of young people that gave their lives to Christ at his funeral and one of them is now a Youth Pastor.
Although the pain is so great, it seems like God always allows good things to come from times like this.
Even if you can't see it at the time, believe me when I tell you, it manifests itself somwhere down the road.
My brother had written a speech about death as an assignment at college just a week before his death.
He wrote that death was not an end but a beginning, and was not something to be feared, but something to be celebrated!
He stated that he wanted his funeral to be like that too.
He wanted the focus to be more on the celebration part then the grieving part, although that was hard for us to do.
His friends that heard his speech were freaked out because he had wrote that speech so close to his death, and the assignment was that you could write about almost anything.
It was very ironic that he chose to write about that subject.
There were many other things like this surrounding his death, but it would take too long to tell about all of them.
Death is very much a part of life, but it isn't fair when a young life is snuffed out because of the foolish actions of another.
It is a crime that can be avoided if people will only plan ahead and designate a driver if they want to go out and drink.
Thank you Nicole for telling others about the dangers of drunk drivers in these high schools.
Your scars won't ever heal, but they will get better with time.
I have made my peace with the drunk driver who was only 22.
I am sorry to say that I don't remember his name, but I know only a few people came to his funeral and that is very sad.
I heard he was raised by an aunt and was very bitter with life, and was in a drunken rage that terrible night.
To him I say, I forgive you now, and my heart even hurts that you weren't loved the way my brother was.
I want to introduce you and the world to my brother.
His name is "Dennis Wayne Taylor."
I know that he would want us to forgive the driver that took his life.
His short life was full and he touched many lives with his kind ways.
His friends still leave trinkets on his grave to this day.
I miss him so much, and I always cringe when I hear of another person killed this way.
I hope that the future holds some hope that more people will hear this message so that mothers, fathers, siblings and friends won't get that call in the middle of the night telling them that their loved one is dead at the hands of a selfish person that chose to drink and drive.
My message is this too, you could be like the one who killed my brother and you could lose your life as well.
It isn't ever worth the risk!
Make you life count for more then being labeled a murderer if you do survive the wreck.
The death of our loved ones changes our lives forever.
We learn to cope and try to heal but things are never the same again for us.
I look forward to seeing my brother again when my life is over, and that is the only promise I have to hang on to.
I want my life to be a light and I want to make a difference.
It is something I want to do for God and for Dennis.
It is something I want to do in memory of Stephen, and for all of the beautiful souls taken to soon by this senseless tragedy called drunk driving.
Donna Allison
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