On September 19,1970, my father was driving us home from Long Island to Spring Valley, NY. My 3 year old brother was sleeping in the backseat, my mother was in the front middle seat, and since I was only 8 weeks old, I was in a baby carrier next to my Mom. We were less than a mile from being home when the drunk driver plowed through the intersection and T-boned our car.
The force of the impact woke up the people living close to the intersection and destroyed both cars. Our car hit a telephone pole and split the car up to the dashboard. When the first responders arrived, they found my Dad, Mom and brother. After 10-15 minutes of searching through the wreck, they found me sandwiched between the door and the dashboard.
My father had minor injuries from the windshield hitting his face, my brother luckily didn’t have any injuries. Nearly every bone in my body was broken and my skull was fractured. My mother was taken into surgery, but unfortunately died from her injuries, the morning of September 20th.
The driver later confessed he drank at least a 6 pack that night and he was driving with a suspended license. He should have never been behind the wheel of the car that night. When the trial took place in 1971, he was sentence to 3 years with time served since he could not pay his $3,000 bail.
I am nearly 56 years old and never knew my mother due to a drunk driver. My father was never the same as he lost his soul mate while me and my brother did not have our mother. It is time for the law to be changed. Even though I have dedicated my life in sharing my story, we need things to change to stop others from being killed by drunk drivers. I feel this law will really help.
Michael, Barbara’s Son