Posted on 05/26/2005 9:09:09 AM PDT by m1-lightning
Flowers and a melancholy note from grieving family members wilted in the rain on a telephone poll at the corner of Nesper Street and Ryan Avenue in Mayfair yesterday, just a few yards from where a young mother was fatally injured last month.
Sarah McGinley, 18, was pinned by an out-of-control car on her fiance's front lawn on April 17, just seconds after she tossed her 1-year-old daughter to safety. She died from her injuries a few hours later.
Yesterday morning, the District Attorney's Office announced it was filing charges against the driver, Megan Miller, 15, and her father, Richard Miller, 46.
With her father alongside her, Megan Miller was practicing driving in the parking lot of Abraham Lincoln High School when the car crashed through a fence, sped across an intersection and soared up the lawn, hitting McGinley. Miller did not have a learner's permit or a driver's license.
The teen is charged with being involved in an accident involving death or personal injury while not being properly licensed, and will be tried in juvenile court.
Her father is being charged with involuntary manslaughter and homicide by vehicle. He could face up to 12 years in prison, said D.A. spokeswoman Cathie Aboo-kire.
Both father and daughter surrendered to the police accident-investigation division yesterday afternoon, said the family's attorney, Fortunato Perri Jr.
"It is an impossibly difficult time for them," Perri said. "They have nothing but grief for McGinley's family."
The Millers are expected to have separate preliminary hearings within the next week, Perri said.
In both cases, "I think the judge will evaluate the situation and see it's nothing more than an accident. She lost control of the vehicle and was unable to stop what happened. It's a shame," he said.
Local criminal-defense attorney A. Charles Peruto said he believes that juvenile court will be kind to Megan Miller. "The most likely outcome is that they will defer adjudication. They'll leave her in limbo until she's 18 and then wipe her record clean," Peruto said.
The reason, he said, is that as a "young, nonindependent person," she was just following her father's instructions to practice driving.
District Attorney Lynne Abraham viewed the Millers' accident different from Peruto. She cited Pennsylvania law stating that drivers must obtain learner's permits before they can possess a driver's license. "Then and only then may you get behind the wheel of a lethal vehicle and drive the car," she said.
Abraham also faulted Richard Miller for allowing his daughter to drive his 1999 Mercury Grand Marquis, even though they were in a deserted parking lot. If Miller had denied his daughter a driving lesson, "that would have prevented a young mother from dying, and a child from being orphaned for her entire life."
McGinley's daughter, Victoria Wagner, is being cared for by her fiance and his parents.
Make sure you invite them to my BBQ.
Seriesly, this thread is a good example of the fact that our society has spent so much time demonizing DUI drivers that now society accepts all other manners of dangerous drivers. Bad driving is a choice and all damage caused to other people/property needs to be treated equally under the law. Maybe then, people will take driving seriously and the risk to innocent bystanders will be minimized.
How are two red x's supposed to convince me? ;-)
Don't get me started on Pitbulls. Check my profile.
There is no negligence in split second reactions. Situations on the road change rapidly. Instinct has the biggest influence on your reaction. It is instict to avoid a deer. When you have to go into a thought process of deciding which way to turn to avoid the deer, then it takes too much time to do so thus it becomes an accident. Accidents are unintended. I doubt any one who swerves to miss a deer intends to hit a car instead.
No it's not. If someone runs a red light and kills you walking through a cross walk, they are liable, both criminally and in civil court. One is expected to operate a motor vehicle safely. This case was slightly different, they were in a parking lot, not a public street. Even though she was not licensed or permitted, he did use a bit of common sense to take her to a parking lot, that was hopefully empty during off hours. It was clearly a freakish accident, but the father is still liable. I don't think jail time is warranted for the Dad, but a long probation, big fines and restitution for the family for the loss of their mother are in order.
You know what I meant ;)
Because they have failed to use their noggin to think such scenarios thru ahead of time. They have become lazy drivers that think it is just as natural and comfortable as walking. They have forgotten the inherent risks associated and the amount of responsibility they carry when driving. Our laws and society has allowed it to happen.
Kewl pic. I don't see any blood on the driver seat so I am assuming he/she survived. I wonder about the passenger. It still wouldn't be prudent to swerve into the other lane on a busy road to avoid that deer.
Many accidents are caused by negligence. There are millions of accident scenarios and it is impossible to think of all of them.
No law or society can prevent accidents. To think so is negligence in itself.
Untrue.
Actually it's ture. The huge majority of vehicle accidents just don't happen. They is a cause. An accident would be lightening hitting the driver causing a collision. Or a defective wheel falling off of a vehicle. 99.99 percent of all collisions are not accidents, and most are caused by careless drivers.
Ops, I mis read your post. You are correct.
Yes, rarely there is a true accident that would warrant no punishment. However, in the scheme of things these are a very small portion of car crashes causing damage or death. Take a look at your news and watch how many crazy "accidents" go unprosecuted and you'll get a feel for where I'm coming from.
A couple of times a week in my area we get crazy stories like a lady driving on the sidewalk because she was having a bad day, a driver falling asleep and slamming into a police car, etc. These accidents go unprosecuted. Why? Are they not caused by negligence? Well, yes they are, but they don't involve alcohol so they are just normal "accidents."
Hitting a deer would be one of the rare accidents. Some weather conditions would also warrant being classified as accidents.
If prosecution of negligence was more aggressive, my bet is that insurance rates would go down.
Here your are incorrect. Just because you swerve to avoid a deer, a pothole, or a trashcan or debris in the road, does not give you the right to run into anyone else. You will be liable.
Last year near Peoria, IL, a driver hit a deer and sent it airborne into oncoming traffic. The deer decapitated the driver of the oncoming vehicle.
Read my #94.
Absolutely. A tiny fraction are caused by true accidents, like a driver having a heart attack, causing a collision. However, his insurance company will no doubt be sued for damages.
It's not a "right", it's a reaction. And yes, by law, it's legal to cause an accident by avoiding another accident. There is a lot of negligence out there but taking it to the point of "everyone is liable for mistakes" is taking this society into a liberal sue-happy future. People should not have to be paranoid of lawsuits and prison time while driving because paranoyia can cause an accident too. Drive at your own risk, but yes, there are many situations where negligence applies.
Uncle JimBo and Ned are the gun-toting Bubba types; when they take the kids on a camping trip, they get drunk and shoot at will. JimBo's philosophies are, "hunting without drinking is like fishing," and "thanks to those damned Democrats, we can only shoot certain animals that impose a threat; therefore, when you see an animal, you have to yell, 'it's comin' right for us'; then you shoot"
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.