Several recent cases that made headlines involved women who abused either alcohol or drugs – or both ¬– and got behind the wheel of their cars impaired and caused horrific accidents that killed innocent drivers, passengers and children.
We think anyone who drives while impaired on either drugs or alcohol or both should be tried as Class A felons and if convicted should be sent to jail. No exceptions – no excuses.
In July a mom from Long Island going the wrong way on the Taconic Parkway in Westchester County drove her red minivan head on into an SUV, killing three men in that vehicle, her two-year-old daughter, three of her nieces, ages 5, 7 and 9, and herself. Toxicology reports showed that 36-year-old Diane Schuler had a blood alcohol level of .19 and had high levels of THC, which is the main substance found in marijuana. The tragedy occurred at 1:35 p.m.
On October 11, a Bronx mother, Carmen Huertas, 31, wrecked her car on the Harlem River Drive while taking her daughter Brittany and six other young girls to a slumber party at her house. One of the passengers who was not wearing a seatbelt in the Mercury Sable, Leandra Rosado, 11, was killed when she was thrown from the car in the 12:45 a.m. crash. Huertas had a blood alcohol level of 0.132
In the latest horrific accident, a Queens woman, Sheila Bethea, 45, of St. Albans was operating her Mazda minivan at speeds in excess of 70 miles per hour before she slammed into a Toyota van on a quiet St. Albans street. Bethea admitted she smoked crack, did heroin and drank booze before the 5 p.m. crash that killed two foster children who were in her van with her daughter, Tatiana, 6, and a 10-year-old and an 11-year-old passenger. None of the five children was wearing seat belts.
The New York Daily News is campaigning for “Leandra’s Law,” which would make it a felony to drive drunk with passengers under 16. We think all DWI violations – alcohol or drug related – should be made felonies.
We think the police in Queens and the rest of the city should enforce the Driving While Impaired (DWI) laws everyday – all day long. They should set up random checkpoints and remove these irresponsible adults from our city streets and highways.
Too many children have died.
