[eric.hanke]

Authorities still deciding whether to charge driver

Stan Maddux
For The News-Dispatch

LA PORTE - No decision has been made on whether to charge a woman in connection with two deaths from a collision in Westville between an SUV and motorcycle.

La Porte County Sheriff's deputies said Thursday that Pamela Owen, 49, Valparaiso, was the driver of the SUV that hit the oncoming motorcycle on U.S. 421 near the south junction of U.S. 6.

Owen indicated she had fallen asleep a couple times on her way home Tuesday night and did not remember the crash, police said. She was taken to St. Anthony Memorial in Michigan City complaining of back pain.

As is standard with any fatality, a blood sample was taken from Owen to determine if alcohol or drugs played a role. The test results are still pending, said police.

"There was no alcohol related to this that we know of," said La Porte County Sherrif's Department Capt. George Ritter, however, he would not say if any other foreign substance might have been a possible factor.

"The crash is still under investigation and will have to be completed before there is any determination on whether there will be charges filed," Ritter said.

The investigation shows Owen was headed south on U.S. 421 and crossed into the northbound lane, striking the oncoming motorcycle.

The driver of the motorcycle, Alex Esser, 33, Valparaiso and his passenger, Jennifer Ray, 20, South Haven, a 2007 graduate of Portage High School, landed in a soybean field. They were pronounced dead from massive internal injuries, said La Porte County Chief Deputy Coroner John Sullivan.

Her mother, Donna Ray, said her daughter was recently promoted to assistant manager at Radio Shack in Hobart. "She was so proud of it," Ray said. In high school, Ray said her daughter was a flute player in the band.

Jennifer was described by friends as outgoing and often doing fun things at the spur of the moment. "We'd do stuff as it came at us," said Cristen Coffey, 20, also of South Haven.

Ray said she watched her daughter leave on the motorcycle late in the afternoon and talked to her on a cell phone about an hour later.

"She didn't drink. She didn't smoke. She was highly against it. She was just a good kid," Mrs. Ray said.

Sullivan said there were skid marks that appeared to be from Owens' 2001 Dodge Durango left on the highway that indicate she veered over the center line.

I don’t get it. How is this not a clear cut case of negligence?
The driver of the vehicle admitted being tired and falling asleep at the wheel numerous times prior to the accident.

[Dave]

(*See standard legal disclaimer below.)

While this appears to have been negligence on the part of Ms. Owen, and could very well be the basis for a civil lawsuit against her on the behalf of the estates and/or families of the two victims of this incident, it may not be sufficient grounds for a successful criminal prosecution.

Typically, mere negligence isn't enough for criminal liability. What's usually required is gross negligence, defined here as:

gross negligence
n. carelessness which is in reckless disregard for the safety or lives of others, and is so great it appears to be a conscious violation of other people's rights to safety. It is more than simple inadvertence, but it is just shy of being intentionally evil....

Are the facts as described gross negligence? That's probably a question a jury would have to decide.

*Disclaimer: I am an attorney, but I am licensed in Illinois, not Indiana. I am most definitely not your attorney, and if you have legal questions for which you want definite answers you should retain an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction to get them. Don't take legal advice from internet message boards. Don't run with scissors. Close cover before striking. Keep out of reach of children.

This post has been edited by Dave: Nov 7 2008, 03:28 PM

[eric.hanke]

My point exactly.

Typically, mere negligence isn't enough for criminal liability. What's usually required is gross negligence, defined here as:
Are the facts as described gross negligence? That's probably a question a jury would have to decide.

Seems like there is more than enough for criminal charges to be filed by local law enforcement.



*Disclaimer: I am not an attorney, I am licensed in Indiana to drive while not asleep. I am most definitely not anyones attorney, if you have legal questions for which you want definite answers you should retain a licensed attorney. Don't take legal advice from internet message boards. Don't run with scissors. Close cover before striking. Keep out of reach of children. Mind your P's and Q'.

[jdillard]

This would be involuntary vehicular manslaughter. "Vehicular manslaughter is a kind of misdemeanor manslaughter, which holds persons liable for any death which occurs because of criminal negligence, or a violation of traffic safety laws." (from wikipedia.org). She violated traffic safety laws by driving while drowsy. While it is very unfortunate, especially since it was only an accident, the law states that when the victim dies, it is up to the authorities to prosecute her. It is probably taking them long to decide because the driver truly didn't mean any harm. It would be charged as a misdemeanor, which means she couldn't be in jail for longer than a year. However, were I the judge, I would instead have her license suspended for a year rather than make her sit in jail for a year because she accidentally fell asleep while driving.

[krk]

This would be involuntary vehicular manslaughter. "Vehicular manslaughter is a kind of misdemeanor manslaughter, which holds persons liable for any death which occurs because of criminal negligence, or a violation of traffic safety laws." (from wikipedia.org). She violated traffic safety laws by driving while drowsy. While it is very unfortunate, especially since it was only an accident, the law states that when the victim dies, it is up to the authorities to prosecute her. It is probably taking them long to decide because the driver truly didn't mean any harm. It would be charged as a misdemeanor, which means she couldn't be in jail for longer than a year. However, were I the judge, I would instead have her license suspended for a year rather than make her sit in jail for a year because she accidentally fell asleep while driving.

She said she fell asleep a couple of times.
Fall asleep once? Pull over, get coffee, do something! Fall asleep again and veer into another lane and kill two people? Hmmmm. I'd be fine with this person not driving for a year, or maybe....NEVER.