8, Including 5 Kids, Killed By Car Fleeing Cops

[freckles and boo]

You are going to hang your whole response to me on one word? Cultural? All I was saying -in context-is that THIS family had many things going on that make them different than we are. Different set of facts that might require they put their kids in the back of a truck to take them somewhere. Would I do it? No freakin' way. Do I understand that they might need to do it or that it's just part of daily life for them. sure do. You don't? I can't condemn them for the way they live.

And - would you give up your car to a theif to save the lives of 5 children?

The final question is a red herring. Of course I would give up my car. That has NOTHING to do with the fact that these parents made an tragic choice. I am not "condemning" them. However, they were taking ONE child to a football practice. It wasn't as if they all needed to be there. Had there been one child and one adult safely buckled into the cab of a pick-up truck we wouldn't be having this conversation.

 

[EmmersIsTheMommy]

So here's the thing. We all obviously have differing opinions.

In the end, accidents happen. If it hadn't been the theives being chased by cops, that family could've been T boned by ANYONE and had everyone die.

Odds are good they would've made it there safely. But how long, in the end, would it be until they DID get in a wreck? Ya know? What the parents did was reckless..and I don't see how it would've EVER ended up good for that family. This is why carseat safety is so important.

 

[sbell111]

Bottom line: It is unlawful, regardless of circumstances, to put your kids in the back of a pickup truck on public streets. Since is is also unsafe, there are no circumstances in which it is ok to do so. This goes for car seats as well. I don't care what you excuse is, you must adhere to child restraint laws. If as an adult you chose not to wear a seat belt and are willing to accept the danger and/or fines for doing so you are making an informed choice to break the law. Children are not able to make this choice according to our laws, that is why parents are ticketed when they are broken.

I bolded the bit where you are incorrect. As I posted early in the thread, California allows passengers in the bed of a pickup in four scenarios. Driving your family to another town to participate in/watch a ball game is not one of them.

 

[bgirldeb]

Here is a local story that happened this week. A 12 year old girl was thrown from her family's SUV through a window, off an overpass because she was laying down in the seat and not wearing a seatbelt. Shows what can happen when you are not properly restrained. The accident was from the tread separating on the rear tire of the vehicle, causing them to spin out of control.

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/aug/12/131556/girl-dies-falling-i-75-overpass-us-301/news-breaking/

Girl dies falling off I-75 overpass onto U.S. 301
By HALLE STOCKTON

Sarasota Herald-Tribune

When a vehicle hit a guard rail on an Interstate 75 overpass Wednesday, the impact hurled a sleeping 12-year-old girl out a window and onto the pavement of busy U.S. 301 roadway 26 feet below.

The driver of a tractor-trailer on U.S. 301 saw the girl's plunge and quickly halted the rig to avoid running her over. The driver then maneuvered the trailer across the northbound lanes to block traffic from hitting her, said Florida Highway Patrol Lt. Chris Miller.

The girl, Amarilis Cardona of Cape Coral, died at Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg shortly after being flown there by emergency helicopter, Miller said.

The girl's stepfather, Daniel J. Garcia, 29, of Cape Coral, lost control of the Ford Expedition about 8 a.m. Wednesday while traveling northbound on I-75 near the U.S. 301 exit in Ellenton.

The tread of a rear tire separated on the sport-utility vehicle, jolting it into a spin that caused the SUV to slam into a concrete barrier, Miller said.

Amarilis was lying down in the third row of seats without a seat belt and was ejected through a side window.

She landed on U.S. 301 just in front of the tractor-trailer. The truck driver's name was not released, pending further FHP interviews.

There were three other Cape Coral residents in the SUV: Rita M. Sanchez, 28; Margarita Caldas, 22; and Edwin Cruz, 7.

Sanchez and Caldas sustained minor injuries; Garcia and Edwin were not injured, FHP reported. The relationship among the remaining passengers is unclear.

The crash is under investigation, and charges are pending.

Miller said troopers often encounter vehicles with unrestrained, sleeping children in the back seat.

"I understand children get tired during long car trips," he said. "But the thing is, you never know when you'll be in a crash, and it's not like you'll have time to sit up and put a seat belt on. This is a sad, tragic case."

The I-75 overpass is the same place where a fuel tanker rolled off and exploded last summer. The driver was killed, and the explosion damaged the overpass.

The overpass was repaired in about two weeks. In May, a semi lost control on the bridge and teetered on the concrete wall as it leaked diesel fuel. The driver was not injured.