Posted on 10/12/2005 9:44:06 PM PDT by Travis McGee
By BILL BURKE, The Virginian-Pilot © October 10, 2005
The Ford Escort was racing north on rural Seaside Road, its occupants headed home from a wedding, when it ran a stop sign at 55 mph.
The driver of a Ford F-150 traveling east through the intersection never saw the Escort, police said.
The T-bone crash killed the driver of the Escort, Rene Leyva-Perez, and 4-year-old Daniel Salazar, who was in the back seat. Daniel’s pregnant mother, Marina Salazar, and the driver of the pickup were injured.
When police arrived, they discovered that Leyva-Perez had no auto insurance or driver’s license – only a laminated ID card issued by the tomato-packing plant where he worked – and that the car was registered to a woman in Chesapeake and had Michigan plates.
In the Escort’s wreckage, they found empty cans of Modelo Especial – acclaimed in Mexico as “the elite of beers.”
That violent collision nine days ago, on an unlit stretch of Accomack County blacktop, is the latest example of a deadly trend:
Since 2002, more than 90 people have been injured and 18 killed on the Eastern Shore in accidents involving Hispanic workers driving rogue vehicles.
The fatalities represent about one-fourth of the 71 highway deaths on the Eastern Shore in that period, even though the year-round Hispanic population makes up only 5 percent of the region’s 51,000 residents. Those numbers swell during tomato-picking season, from July through early November, when most of the fatalities occurred.
Accidents like the one on Oct. 1 have helped make the 77-mile stretch of U.S. 13 from the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel to the Maryland state line one of the most treacherous highways in Virginia. In 2003, the fatality rate – deaths per miles driven – on that span of U.S. 13 was more than four times the rates on Interstates 64, 81 and 95 in Virginia.
In all but three of the fatal accidents in which Hispanics were at the wheel, the drivers had no insurance. In most cases, the vehicles had no inspection stickers, the drivers carried no license and alcohol was a factor. The vast majority of the victims in the fatalities were Hispanic.
A review of State Police auto accident reports for 2002 through 2004 on the Eastern Shore also revealed that of the 179 accidents involving Hispanic laborers:
Three-fourths of the drivers had no auto insurance – more than four times the national rate for uninsured motorists.
Nearly all of the vehicles driven by migrants and other laborers were registered to other drivers.
Ninety-three percent of the vehicles had out-of-state tags – most of them from Tennessee.
The number of injuries per accident was about 50 percent higher than the statewide average.
The troopers patrolling U.S. 13, a busy artery connecting Hampton Roads to the populous Northeast, are frustrated by the pattern of lawlessness and mayhem.
Only 10 troopers are assigned to the highways that crisscross the Eastern Shore’s 263 square miles – and on some shifts there is only one trooper on duty for each of the Shore’s two counties. First Sgt. J.P. Koushel, who oversees the Shore’s troopers, said his unit is “tremendously understaffed” and that he has requested additional manpower.
“Right now we’re just running from call to call,” Koushel said. “We can’t even be pro active anymore.”
Koushel said most of the vehicles involved in accidents that kill and injure fail to meet Virginia highway safety standards. He called it “a mockery” of the state’s vehicle registration law.
Tennessee plates
The state of Tennessee appears to be an enabler for many of the illegal drivers.
Up and down the Eastern Shore, in the work camps and housing complexes where migrants and year-round laborers live, Tennessee plates abound. Eastern Shore law enforcers suspect there is a flourishing black market for Tennessee tags.
There has been speculation of a mail-order operation, but postmasters say they cannot discuss the nature of their mail. Officials for the State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation would not say if they are looking into the Tennessee tag issue.
Tennessee’s titling and registration regulations are among the most lax in the nation. Several migrants interviewed recently said they got Tennessee tags because they were turned down by Virginia’s Department of Motor Vehicles.
Tennessee does not require identification or proof of insurance when a vehicle is titled and plates are issued, as long as the motorist pays cash. Most states require identification or proof of insurance; Virginia requires both.
Tennessee state Sen. Bill Ketron said his state’s legislature has failed to close the loophole because of pressure from the powerful auto insurance industry, which he says “wants to be able to cherry-pick who they sell to,” rather than being forced to insure high-risk drivers. He plans to introduce a bill during the next legislative session, which begins in January, that would toughen titling and registration requirements.
The problem also has come to the attention of Virginia’s Migrant and Seasonal Farm Workers Advisory Board. The Tennessee license plate matter is “a political hot potato,” said Kenneth E. Annis of Exmore, chairman of the 15-member board.
Annis promised that it will be addressed at the board’s next meeting. The board, which meets four times a year, can recommend changes to the governor or the General Assembly.
Other regions with significant Hispanic populations, such as Rockingham County in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley and the Greensboro/Winston-Salem area of North Carolina, have not seen significant numbers of cars with Tennessee tags, say law enforcement officials there.
But on the Eastern Shore, “Somebody is making it very easy for these drivers to get Tennessee tags,” Annis said. “It’s all very fishy.”
And deadly. In the 13 fatal accidents since 2002 involving Hispanic workers, six vehicles bore Tennessee tags.
Many of the Tennessee plates on the Shore were issued in Union County, in the eastern part of the state near the Virginia border – about a nine-hour drive from the Shore.
Jim Houston, county clerk for Union County, said Tennessee officials are aware of the problem. Houston said his office sees “quite a few” Hispanics registering vehicles, “and I think the number’s increasing.”
When the topic of migrants titling vehicles came up at a recent meeting of Tennessee clerks, Houston said, “One of the other clerks said, 'Lord, we’re overrun with them.’”
I forgot to add, that your blunt honesty is refreshing.
I don't like disingenuous arguements.
"In all but three of the fatal accidents in which Hispanics were at the wheel, the drivers had no insurance."
By California Democrat logic (Assemblyman Gil Cedillo), the obvious solution is to give the illegal alien a drivers license. If the fellow had a license, then automatically he would:
(1) observe the traffic laws, including stop signs;
(2) not drink and drive, because 'drivers ed class says so';
(3) buy insurance, because once he gets his license he will be magically inspired to do everything legally; and
(4) pay taxes, attend church, give to the United Way, help old ladies across the street, volunteer at the local soup kitchen, kiss babies on the street, stop whistling at local white girls, and all the other loving acts that any illegal alien would do if only you gave him a drivers license.
It would of course make him a better citizen.
Yeah, like hell.
[/sarcasm]
FYI, I don't think any insurance companies will sell you auto insurance unless you have a drivers license.
The administration has an open door policy - ya'll come on in - no problem. No license - no problem - no green card - no problem. Kill US citizens - No problem. Someone needs to tell the INS we have a problem.
We al all saddened by what the lack of political will, and a sincere desire for profit over Borders and Constitutional security has done to you and your family, and a lot of other families!
I have had my fill of the "Cult of Bush" here, and in the outside world too!
We, as Conservatives, MUST take a stand that ends the tyranny we are being subjected to; where ILLEGAL INFILTRATORS are more valued and respected than American Citizens of ALL backgrounds!
This ends now! Whatever it takes, we need to stop the crap that comes from politicians of all stripes!
No more American Citizens will be sacrificed for cheap lettuce, clean toilets, and POLITICAL EXPEDIENCY!
I live in Indian country, and per capita we have more DWI fatalities than any city in the US. We are forced to buy no fault insurance because drunks NEVER have insurance. I live close to I-40 and there has been a huge increase in fatalities caused by illegals from Mexico. The one thing that drunk Indians and illegals from Mexico have is that they NEVER have insurance, they ALWAYS KILL INNOCENT PEOPLE, and most of them don't die in the wrecks.
Because of this, our insurance rates are much higher than any where in the US. When I was living in Albuquerque I had my Corvette insured with State Farm, and when I moved into drunk territory, my insurance went up several hundred dollars a year. When I asked my agent why he told me it was because of the high rate of uninsured motorists in this area.
You got that right.
"Further, the level of general law breaking in hispanic communities is higher than that of caucasians, but lower than that of the citizen african american communities."
More combining of US Citizen/illegal immigrant populations.
I have it on good authority that 100% of illegal immigrant hispanics are breaking the law.....
So keep up the statistical nonsense with regard to pooling hispanic US citizens and illegal immigrants if you want. Most US citizens are not lawbreakers. Every illegal immigrant is a lawbreaker.... every drunk illegal alien mexican driving an uninsured vehicle recklessly that kills people on the eastern shore is a menace to a civilized society. I say find them and deport them before they kill again with their disregard for our laws, decency, and accountability.
"I don't like disingenuous arguements."
You are the king of disingenuous arguments on this thread.
For example, you combine US citizens and illegal immigrants in one group that you choose to call "hispanics" and then say that they are "more law abiding" than other groups of American. This is the very essence of deception and disingenuity.
You tried the same argument with "hispanics" and drunk driving. If you want to advocate changing immigration laws to embrace these illegals, fine, but making deceptive arguments that somehow illegal immigrants are just like citizens is what is disingenuous.
Posted today on FRl. Since he was driving a ferrari and had a license and his last name was Lane. I'm assuming he was a citizen.
Driver cited 42 times prior to fatal crash
Sun-Sentinel Tribune ^ | 10-13-2005 | Angela Rozas and Joseph Sjostrom,
Posted on 10/13/2005 3:59:12 PM EDT by Cagey
Two days after his daughter and grandson were killed in a three-car collision in West Chicago, Mike Donovan grieves as he pictures the bruised 4-year-old in the hospital.
"I held him, and I talked to him. It was the hardest thing I've ever had to do," he said. But along with the shock and grief, there is anger too.
One of the drivers involved in the crash, 27-year-old Matthew Lane of Wheaton, had a long history of speeding tickets and driving infractions. He had been cited 42 times in the last nine years in DuPage County, 24 times for speeding, but only had his license revoked once.
Though police have not figured out what happened in the crash, or who was to blame, Donovan wants to know why Lane was driving in the first place.
"I am really angry right now," Donovan said Wednesday, sitting in the kitchen of his Carol Stream home. "My daughter and my grandson are not just going to be another statistic. There is no way a person with 20 violations should have had a driver's license."
Donovan's daughter, Nicole Westerhoff of North Aurora, and his grandson Devon Westerhoff somehow collided with Lane and a third driver on an unlit curve on Fabyan Parkway on Monday evening. Nicole and Devon, as well as Lane, were killed. A third driver in a Ford Explorer was not seriously injured.
Driver had valid license
Police aren't sure how fast any of the drivers were going. The posted speed limit is 45 m.p.h. Lane's car, a 1995 Ferrari, split in two from the impact. It may take a week for investigators to reconstruct what happened, said Deputy Chief of Police Don Goncher.
Despite the 24 speeding tickets, Lane had a valid driver's license. Although state law requires that anyone who gets three or more moving violations in a year face suspension, the law excludes tickets in which the violator successfully completes court supervision.
Supervision, granted at the judge's discretion, means that the conviction will not go on the driver's permanent record if the driver does not violate traffic laws for a given amount of time.
Lane has only a 2002 crash for which he was not cited on his permanent driving record, according to the secretary of state's office.
The office would not disclose how many supervisions Lane received, but a check of his record in DuPage County revealed he received supervision for 18 speeding tickets, including three this year. Lane was due in court Wednesday on a speeding ticket from Addison. He pleaded guilty Sept. 30 for speeding 31 to 39 m.p.h. above the speed limit and received five months' supervision and had to serve in the Sheriff's Work Alternative Program, according to court records.
His license has only been revoked once, in 1997, according to court records, but that revocation no longer shows up on his permanent record.
Moving violations are purged from the record after 4 1/2 years, according to Beth Kaufman, spokeswoman for the secretary of state's office.
A new law signed by Gov. Rod Blagojevich on July 26, however, is intended to keep drivers like Lane from driving.
The bill, sponsored by state Rep. Lisa Dugan (D-Bradley) and state Sen. Debbie Halvorson (D-Crete), goes into effect in January. It mandates that anyone who receives two supervisions in a year for driving violations cannot receive a third supervision within a year of the first one.
Last year, 3,785 drivers received court supervision for more than three offenses, 128 drivers received court supervision more than six times, and one driver received court supervision 14 times, according to the secretary of state's office. Over the last three years, 28 drivers have received court supervision 10 or more times in a 12-month period.
Court supervision was created to give people who make one or two mistakes a second chance, Dugan said.
"It was never meant so somebody could have 8, 10, 12, 14 supervisions and still get supervision in one year's time. That's ridiculous," she said.
DuPage County State's Atty. Joseph Birkett said his office is reviewing all of Lane's cases in Traffic Court to determine if his office could have done more to prevent him from keeping his driver's license.
Birkett said his prosecutors always object to a judge granting court supervision. In some of the cases, local prosecutors, hired by the towns in which the tickets were given, prosecuted the cases.
But, Birkett conceded that the court and his personnel are not always privy to the complete driving record of the 245,000 cases that pass through DuPage County each year. That's despite the fact that the secretary of state implemented a court supervision database in 1999, which was supposed to compile all of the driving records from individual courthouses, so that law enforcement, attorneys and judges could review drivers' case histories.
Birkett said because of the volume of cases--prosecutors can handle as many as 250 traffic cases a day--his prosecutors don't always have the time to look through the records. They often instead rely on the clerk's record in the courtroom.
"Oftentimes, unless the officer has done something to give an assistant a heads-up, we may not have the complete record," he said.
Although nobody has blamed Lane in this crash, Birkett said he believed the man should not have been driving.
"There is nothing I can say that's going to bring back the victims in this case," he said. "While we don't know the circumstances of this crash, this guy should not have had a valid driver's license. We're going to get to the bottom of it."
Victim planned to go to college
Westerhoff married her high school sweetheart, Harry Westerhoff, in 2001.
Nicole Westerhoff was unemployed, but had been making plans to register at College of DuPage to learn to work in rehabilitation of disabled children.
"She said just the other day, `All I need is this little boy and I'll be fine,'" Donovan said.
Donovan said he wanted to speak out for his daughter and grandson, and wanted answers about what happened to them.
"I want to see to it that people with that kind of driving record won't ever be allowed to drive," he said. "I want to raise some hell and open people's eyes. No parent should ever go through what I'm going through."
What the hell is your point? Jerk.AWB
So what's your point? We should let in millions of illegal aliens because white people drive drunk, too? Well, to that I say, if we've got drunk drivers here already (of any race), why import more (of any race)?
Ping. This might be of interest to you; I believe that it is your neck of the shore.
it has nothing to do with the thread...it's just the usual distraction technique.
Maybe he's making up for bayourod's banning.
my point is the same point I made in post 65 which is the following
"My point is to stop exploiting fringe issues as an excuse to kick out the illegals. Here the fringe issue is bad driving. Ok if the bad driving is the cause of your anti illegal anger, then fix the problem by a guest worker program where those who are bad drivers don't get in. Or better is a guest worker program where before being admitted you have to go a nascar driving school at your expense.
Bottom line, the anti illegal freepers want the illegals gone even if they could drive like Richard Petty.
You want the illegals gone, then say you want the illegals gone. But do not say you want the illegals to be better drivers."
Give me your location and I see if I can't find an ACLU meeting for you to attend.AWB
My point is clearly stated in Post 65.
I WANT THE ILLEGALS GONE. Do you understand that.AWB
If you had read my post#18 you would see this is not the only reason that I want the illegals gone.
I live in arizona and watch them tear my state up every day...
Now aren't you late for your ACLU meeting?
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