I'm sure you all have heard about the college girls who were hit by a car in Mankato, killing one and injuring in the other. Both girls were in the road, one lying down, when the car struck them.
It's tragic for the family that lost a daughter, and for the family who is trying to pull the other girl through.
But I feel for the 17-year-old boy who was driving legally, on the road, and killed someone through what appears to be no fault of his own. Although no one is commenting on whether or not alcohol had been consumed by the girls, they are saying everything but. It's pretty clear that the girl who was killed had tripped and was lying in the road, and the other girl had returned to pick her up.
Now, I'm no athlete, so I can understand klutziness. I have been known to fall off the sidewalk, although I was pregnant at the time. But Lord help me if I get a couple of drinks in me.
And now there are two families changed forever, and a young kid who will live with the fact that he killed someone for the rest of his life. That boy has to go home to his family, to his friends, and to his life with the questions and the guilt. What if he had been quicker to brake? What if he had seen them sooner? What if his high-beams were on? This boy will have to wonder for the rest of his life if he could have done more, even though the person he killed was laying in the street.
3 comments:
The railroad folks tend to refer to pedestrian/train incidents as "natural selection" which is kind of callous, but I also think they're trying to show some support for the guys (and increasingly, gals) in the engines who have to just sit there and watch it happen without the ability do a damn thing.
I do know, however, that those folks do get the more productive support of counseling, etc, so hopefully the kid's family will also be supportive of his working through it too.
I couldn't imagine being responsible for accidentally killing some one. I hope he gets the help he will inevitably need to deal with the situation.
I think the train guys have it right. Sorry, but generally speaking, you have a choice. I was thinking about the kid too. Senior year is bad enough, add that, and you're not going to have an easy time of it.
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