June 21, 2008

• My Hope Deferred....

  I ended up not testifying in Dannie and Char's wrongful death lawsuit because of 12 jurors: 9 men, 3 men, 11 Republicans, 1 Democrat, no minority heritages.  This group of individuals found the trucking company and the truck driver 'not liable' in the wrongful death civil lawsuits for Char and Dannie.  Despite the driver's traffic conviction of improper lane change (there were too many 'eye witness' in the northbound lanes across the median who said Dannie caused the accident while she and the trucker were traveling south); despite the Defense attorneys being very ill-prepared and un-focused on evidence; despite the Defense's outlandish propaganda attacks on Dannie's driving; despite the Prosecution's case debunking all of the Defense's legal arguments; despite the MOUNDS of evidence to support the conclusion that the truck driver caused the accident; despite the Prosecution's case being as solid as the Egyptian tombs, while the Defense's case was leaking like the Mississippi dams.....

  They walked away unharmed

  AGAIN!

  Cell phone records show the driver was on the phone when the truck popped Dannie's rear driver's side tire.  That initial impact caused Dannie to lose control of the car and spin in front of the truck (that's what everyone traveling Northbound first saw). 

  The truck driver was ON HER EFFIN' CELL PHONE!!!!!  She wasn't paying attention. 

  The trucker's deposition statement claimed that Dannie's car hit the bobtail (a bobtail is a semi without the trailer - only the cab and the hook-up for the rig).  When the trucker was put on the witness stand, the earlier statement was thoroughly reduced to the lie it was.

  The jury deliberated less than one hour.  Such a quick turnaround surely meant good news for the Prosecution, according to all beliefs, including the Executive VP of the trucking company.  Not so.  Everyone was stunned in the courtroom.  Never before had the Prosecution so well prepared lost a case against a completely unfit Defense team.

  In civil lawsuits, the standard of proof is 'preponderance of the evidence,' or more likely than not.  I'm certain the jury would have found more than enough to render a liable verdict if they had only touched the evidence given to them.  They decided that the traffic accident was just that, an accident and that the trucking company and the driver were not 'more likely than not' to be at fault.  To further twist the knife in our open wounds, the jurors were shaking hands and hugging the Defense afterwards.  The 3 women jurors came to Dannie's father and asked if they could speak to the family.  WHAT THE FUCK?!?!?!?!?!?!?!  WHAT could possibly be said?  Those closest to the family had no words....the Prosecuting attorneys had no words....but YOU, the group who said the defendants weren't responsible....YOU have words that you want to share?  HELL NO!

  Yes, accidents do happen.  Not one of us believes that the truck driver MEANT to cause deadly harm to two very special people.  Nonetheless, it happened and the driver and the company should take responsibility for the action that caused so many people to have a void in their lives. 

  When I think about the fact that the accident involved 4 people in 3 separate vehicles, and everyone ELSE walked away from it virtually injury free AND once again, everyone ELSE in this case walks away untouched......I can't help but to feel like my hope for some closure has escaped my grasp once again.  I now have to begin to close this void on my own.  We all have to make those moves to initiate our healing process without the smallest fraction of hope that the driver or company will say "I'm sorry."  Truth be told, that's all any of else really wants: Someone to acknowledge the mistake that was made.  The mistake that left a void beyond measure because 2 very special and dear people departed this Earth a long time before anyone expected them to. 

  Our hearts are linked eternally. On Sunday, the day we were to leave for Tampa, C-lah and I got the tattoo here in DC that I was planning for all 3 of us to get in Tampa.  We'll catch Rai up in August.  I'll post pics once it's fully healed. 

  • 9:08 am
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