Earlier this month, Judge Paul King sentenced a mother who pled guilty to a host of charges, including felony DUI vehicular assault, to a 4 year prison sentence. At nearly twice the posted speed limit, Kelly Carrothers, crashed into a line of parents waiting to pick their children up from school. Four other cars were involved in the collision. One victim sustained a serious closed head injury and lost an eye. Ms. Carrother's blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit when measured 90 minutes after the crash. Furthermore, Ms. Carrothers admitted that she left her 18 month old child at home alone to pick up her other child from school.
We at Anderson Hemmat focus our practice on representing the rights of victims injured by the reckless deeds of intoxicated drivers. Many times, our clients are the spouses or children of motorists killed by drunk drivers. What's so important about this story is the fact that local judges are starting to truly understand how prison-worthy this sort of reckless driver conduct is. And before anyone might argue that a person can make one mistake, let me remind you that no one wakes up one day and accidentally does what Ms. Carrothers did. While this may have been the first time she was caught, if Ms. Carrothers was that drunk in the afternoon, the evidence would probably show a culmination of years of reckless drunk driving.
Truly, even the sickest alcoholics may not necessarily look like Otis the town drunk. This disease can quietly take what would otherwise appear to be a Douglas County soccer mom, and make her deadly.
As sad as this story is for Kelly Carrothers' innocent children, and certainly for her victims, one has to believe that thanks to brave judges like Judge Paul King, imposing felony-type prison sentences probably will save lives in the future. I hope Kelly Carrothers takes this time in prison to truly heal from her alcoholism and take to heart how truly lucky she is that her reckless behavior did not result in any fatalities.
At Anderson Hemmat we can assist you by aggressively demanding justice through a personal injury claim. We can also help you by simply answering your questions. If a drunk driver has caused you injury, damages, or death in your family, please contact one of our Denver accident lawyers now.
