A Senseless Tragedy

To the Editor:

On Sunday, December 24, 2000, Christmas Eve, I left for church and as usual, I stopped to buy the newspaper. The headline stopped me in my tracks  “Redding Teen Dies In Crash.” All through Mass I was distracted by thoughts of this senseless tragedy. On the eve of one of the most holiest days of the year, a family in Redding would be suffering the loss of a bright and beautiful young person. Four other families would be suffering the tragedy of the injuries to their children. So many others would be affected by this one crash, including the extended families of these young men, their friends, and yes, even the barber that cut their hair. Let’s not forget the emergency workers at the scene and the cop that had to take the report. The same cop that would be cursed at and asked if he had nothing better to do if he gave someone a speeding ticket much like I was three years ago after stopping a 17 year old at 97 miles per hour on the Hutchinson River Parkway in New York.

One can only wonder what was going on in this vehicle prior to this accident. Was there joy and laughter? Horseplay? Speeding? Was alcohol involved? Or was the driver falling asleep much like the driver of my daughter’s car was. My 22-year-old daughter, an innocent passenger, died when the young driver fell asleep and hit a tree in 1999. No matter how much we as parents warn our children about the dangers while driving, mistakes will be made, some with tragic consequences.

My intention here is not to assign blame as I was not at the scene nor am I an investigator of this accident. But I think blame for accidents in which young people die can be spread to many. First the manufacturers and advertisers of these vehicles for emphasizing speed and performance over safety. Then the municipalities for not assigning more patrols to traffic and speed enforcement. And then, let’s not forget Drivers Ed for not requiring training in bad weather. Last, parents who through their own bad driving set the example to be followed by the young people. Parents also need to remind their driving age children of the differences between fair and bad weather driving.

And young people need to be reminded that death is forever.

Sincerely,

James Rodriguez

55 The Boulevard, Newtown                           December 26, 2000