Drunk Driver Sobs at Sentencing,Then Makes Nasty Comment to Victim's Daughter

[NNN0LHI]

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGB9QFPXW8E.html

PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) - A drunk driver being sentenced for a fatal crash sobbed and expressed remorse on the witness stand - then made a nasty remark to the victim's daughter as he was leaving the courtroom.

Donald Hawkins, 32, of Chunchula, Ala., received the maximum 15-year prison sentence Wednesday for drunken driving manslaughter. He had pleaded guilty in the crash that killed Mary Archer, 64, in December 2003 when he ran a stop sign while speeding in a 35 mph zone.

Trembling on the stand, Hawkins talked about his "tragic mistake" and said he had stopped drinking.

But as he was turning to leave the courtroom after learning his sentence, Hawkins told one of the victim's daughters, "I hope this happens to one of your children."

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[trotsky]

1. Why is this always the case?

Hawkins was ejected from his SUV when it crashed, and initially asked troopers if they had caught the person driving it. Authorities were able to prove he was at the wheel by DNA evidence on the air bag.

The stupid drunk never seems to even be hurt that much, even when they kill someone else.

[livinginphotographs]

9. I heard it was because many injuries are caused by

the body tensing up. A drunk's ability to tighten his muscles in a crash is impaired, so he remains loose and relaxed as he wraps himself around someone else. The sober person, unfortunately, tenses up by reflex, therefore sustaining more injuries.

I have no links, that's just what I learned in high school health class.

[StaggerLee]

13. I remember an episode of Emergency

(70's first responder tv show)

A guy drove his car off of a steep embankment and the only thing that saved him was his being totally smashed. Comfortably numb so to speak.

That episode stands out the strongest in my mind for some reason. I was fairly young when I saw it.

[trotsky]

14. Yeah, makes sense.

Even when being thrown out of your vehicle, apparently!

(I had a friend in college killed by a drunk driver. The drunk got barely a scratch while my friend and his date were killed instantly.)

[havocmom]

17. My brother's years as a paramedic in Southern Calif tend to back up

your points. He used to get so pissed about the carnage caused by drunks who could not even manage to stand up without somebody on each side holding them. They were usually just fine.

He finally lost it one day after one too many small child scraped off pavement and went after the staggering and swaggering drunk. Big guy my Bro'. Good thing the CHP officers in attendance were big enough to hold him back.

[mccoyn]

22. I don't believe this.

Let me get this straight. If I were to tense up say my leg, that has a noticable affect on the amount of force required to break the bone? Or, if I tense up my abs it will greatly reduce the force required to pucture them? I don't buy it, the forces at play during a car accident are off the scale when compared to the forces that muscles can produce.

Here is a link about a study that suggests alcohol increases injuries.
http://alcoholism.about.com/cs/drive/a/aa030420a.htm

[livinginphotographs]

31. I'm not arguing either way

I was just giving a "I've heard..." example.

[Orangepeel]

36. we probably just hear about it more if the drunk survives

if the drunk driver is killed, then the story pretty much goes away after the initial report. If not, there could be a trial, too, so there is more coverage.

It also makes a more interesting, if more tragic, story. If this asshole hadn't made the remark to the victim's daughter, the story wouldn't be posted here.

[shanti]

30. i've heard this too

my ex was in a car that rolled. the driver was drunk, my ex was not. the driver sustained no injuries, but my ex did.

[malmapus]

35. Being Airborne can back that up too

After jumping from the aircraft and having your chute deploy, you're taught not to look down because people have a tendency to tense up. Would always be looking straight ahead to stay relaxed and let the body absorb the impact when would meet mother earth again.

[losdiablosgato]

10. I know what you mean

This guy in Houston killed 3 and put 3 in the hosiptal this week and he walked away.

[DS1]

12. Drunk people survive more because they don't know they're

about to get in a crash (or they don't react to it soon enough) and are much more limber at the time of collision instead of being all tensed up - being tensed up contributes to a lot of the damage.

[bluestateguy]

2. I hope someone in prison introduces him to Mr. Plunger

[Evergreen Emerald]

3. They always show remorse after they get caught

and durning sentencing in hopes of leniency. His true colors showed as he taunted the daughter whose parent he KILLED.

[Mad_Dem_X]

4. They put on a good show in hopes of getting off

"I hope this happens to one of your children"???? Hell, it already happened, to her mother! :wtf:

[hadrons]

7. "I hope this happens to one of your children"; referring to the sentence?

trying to make himself out to be the victim ("I hope your kids get the same injustice as me!!!")

drives a SUV
recklessly kills someone
evades responsibility
shows no real remorse (other than getting caught)
paints HIMSELF as the victim

let me guess which political party he votes for

[Ganja Ninja]

5. Just a wild guess but I'll bet he's ...

a conservative christian.

[Name removed]

6. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Name removed]

Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[11 Bravo]

11. Hawkins is clearly a contemptible prick, but

I have never been of the opinion that anal rape should be tacked onto anyone's prison sentence.

[oddmanout]

15. Perhaps

I agree and withdraw my former statement. Perhaps he should have a 3ft by 6 ft poster of the woman he murdered posted on his cell wall to remind him every day of his despicable act.

:dem:

[alcibiades_mystery]

21. See, as a society, we've already determined what punishment is

It is the loss of your freedom for a determined amount of time.

We don't need - nor would we want - to add anything over and above that punishment.

[youspeakmylanguage]

24. By allowing our elected officials to ignore rape in prisons...

...and refuse to adequately reform the system, we, as a society, are adding that as a punishment by default.

[alcibiades_mystery]

25. Indeed

The conditions are disgraceful, and the secret glee that many feel about prison rape for everybody from car thieves to murderers does indeed tell us that our society at the very least condones rape (funny that the moral absolutists always use rape as their counter to "moral relativism," when many will be very relativist about rape when it comes to prison rape...).

[ret5hd]

16. i agree...some of the sentiments shown here...

are truly disturbing. vaseline and ground glass? mr. plunger? maybe understandable if you were the family of the victims, but...

[youspeakmylanguage]

23. I've said this before...

...when statements like that are made, we are proving ourselves to be no better than the neocon "hate blogs". We're supposed to hold ourselves to a higher standard of civility, people.

[alcibiades_mystery]

20. Amazing isn't it?

I agree: the guy is a prick and should lose 15 years of his life to contemplate his atrocious actions.

But prison was never meant to be a rape factory for "rape vengeance." Anytime anyone wishes prison rape on someone, I am disgusted and saddened for our society. It's funny that these same people usually rely on "the law" as their great arbiter. Someone should remind them that rape is illegal no matter where it occurs. Sickening, disgusting people abound.

[oddmanout]

26. I have no sympathy for this man

He forfeited his right to sympathy when he got in his car intoxicated and MURDERED a woman in cold blood. He is NOT the victim, he is the criminal....period. I would expect no less if it were my thoughtless irresponsibility that destroyed not only her life but her families.


:nuke:

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

28. Not having symapthy and advocating prison rape are two different

things.

Prison rape is a serious problem as is the fact that many in prison are factually innocent and also get raped (latest figures indicate up to 10% which is statistically significant when we are talking millions of people in prison)

[alcibiades_mystery]

29. Who said anything about sympathy?

I'm talking about the law.

You have so much "respect for the law"? You should be against ANY forced and non-consensual sexual assault. Period. If you are not, then you are just as lawless and rotten as the murderers you so lustily condemn.

As a society, we have decided on what constitutes ethical punishment for his actions, and he has received that punishment: 15 years in prison. Now, if you think there should be raped tacked on to that, perhaps you should lobby the legislature to make rape an acceptable punishment for offenses, such that a judge actually sentences people to rape upon conviction? You tell me, is that the sign of a healthy or a savage society?

[oddmanout]

33. I withdrew my statement

But I still hope this bastard smells his skin cooking in hell (if there is one) for all eternity. Again as I would expect if it were me in his place.

[alcibiades_mystery]

34. I'm content with the standard punishments

devised by the laws and the reasonable people of our society. Skin cooking and other medieval punishment schemes seem to me the mark of a sick society, so I'm glad that judges do not sentence people to be burned alive anymore, it being twisted, savage, and depraved as a mode of human conduct.

What you would "expect" is utterly and completely beside the point.

[oddmanout]

39. lesson learned

I withdrew my statement. I apologize for the thoughtless comment. And thank you for the important lesson on censoring my feelings. I'll go back to my corner now.

[alcibiades_mystery]

40. No one is censoring anything

So you can go ahead and drop the martyr complex.

You are free to air your feelings, of course. And other people are free to critique them if they at odds with their values.

There is a difference between censorship and critique, at least for those who can stand the heat in the kitchen. You wanna go back to your corner, that's on you. Don't pretend that you're being oppressed because people thought your argument was bunk.

[Logansquare]

27. Rape in prison is always the strong and most violent against

the weak and less violent. Should a person get raped for writing bad checks? Doesn't matter; if he's 135 lbs and 5'6", a 250 lb. murderer will make his life a living hell of sexual assault. People who cheer on the idea of prison rape have no more concept of justice than a lynch mob.

[customerserviceguy]

37. If the deceased were my relative

I'd be out there taking up a collection to have him killed in prison. But that's just me, your mercy may vary.

[alcibiades_mystery]

41. A damn good reason

for non-partisan juries and judges, and a society of laws, rather than a conglomeration of endless revenge killings. Thankfully, our justice system does not put itself in the place of the victim's families and hard-revenge scenarios. It is simply not designed to function that way, for the very reason you provide here.

Needless to say, contract murder (even of this shitbird drunk driver) remains illegal, and damn well should.

[customerserviceguy]

47. We surrender our inherent right

of revenge to a justice system. When that justice system is fair, equitable, and reasonably predictable, it is a fair bargain.

When child rapists can get a short sentence, barely deterring them from quickly finding a new victim, or drunk drivers are left to continually rampage over the lives of innocent people, then the system no longer works. Expect the consequences of its failure, or strive to fix it.

[bluestateguy]

44. I do

I think he should be made to be Vito's bitch.

Sometimes people overintellectualize things that are actually very simple.

[alcibiades_mystery]

46. You are thus a proponent of illegality

And no better than the drunk asshole himself.

What the fuck do you care about the law? You spit on the law for your sick revenge fantasies.

[skypilot]

8. Obviously a drunk driver and...

...a psychopath. All the talk about his "tragic mistake" was probably another example of how psychopaths simply know how to "mouth the words", but there are no genuine feelings behind them. And he's stopped drinking? Well, I'd think so, unless they are having Happy Hour in prisons these days.

[LisaL]

18. Well, he clearly deserves what he got.

I am glad the judge wasn't fooled by his dog and pony show of remorse.

[jpak]

19. Hey, this is the Redneck Riviera

WTF do people expect out of these assholes????

Compassion????

Sincerity????

The guy cried at his sentencing cuz he's going to jail for a long time - not because he got drunk, killed someone and got caught.

[JPZenger]

32. I'm Very Sorry... That I was Caught

That's typical. He's sorry alright, sorry he was caught.

I had an experience with a repeat drunk driver in a hit and run that totalled my new car. The police were too lazy to prosecute him, after he raced away in his SUV (with the name of his construction company written on the back). The police said that because it was nighttime, I wouldn't be able to testify that he was the guy who was actually driving the vehicle.

[rigel434]

38. Big mistake

This will come back to haunt him some day when he tries to get parole. Glad he showed his true colors.

[alcibiades_mystery]

42. Absolutely

This fuckstick can count on doing the full fifteen. As well he should.

[The Blue Knight]

43. What a piece of shit.

[killbotfactory]

45. was he a republican?