Never too late / Mourning parents try to save other teens' lives
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By JESSE FRUHWIRTH
Standard-Examiner Davis Bureau
PDF: The Utah Department of Health Violence and Injury Prevention Program encourages teens to drive safely.
SALT LAKE CITY -- The intent of a news conference Thursday was to remind teens to be safe behind the wheel, but many Top of Utah parents in attendance whose children died in motor-vehicle accidents had messages for legislators, as well.
Motor-vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death for Utahns ages 15 to 19. In 2007, 40 Utah teens were killed on the roads.
The event was organized by the Violence and Injury Prevention Program at the Utah Department of Health.
Organizers compiled a memorial booklet using the names, faces and stories of 16 Utah teens who died during 2007 in hopes of educating other teens.
West Haven resident Diane Baker's 19-year-old son, Daniel Baker, died Aug. 6, 2007, after he crashed his motorcycle. Baker doesn't know how fast her son was traveling when he crashed, but speed was an issue.
"When he bought his bike, I knew something might happen, but I hoped it wouldn't," she said.
She hopes for caution in other young drivers, but she also wants changes in laws.
"Why does anything need to have the possibility to go 200 mph?" she said.
She's also interested in strengthening helmet and bike-armor requirements. Daniel was wearing a helmet at the time of his crash, but it wasn't enough to save him.
Dana Edwards, of Roy, said after the news conference, "You'll be seeing me up on Capitol Hill this year," regarding laws she wants changed.
Edwards' son wasn't acting recklessly at all. He was a back-seat passenger in a car that was stopped at traffic light when a drunken driver rear-ended the vehicle, killing 17-year-old John Edwards on July 1, 2007.
The driver, who Edwards later learned was a repeat DUI offender, did not stop after the crash and later refused a breath-alcohol test. He was granted bail within hours of his arrest, she said, and likely was still under the influence of alcohol when he left jail.
Edwards wants lawmakers to reassess how bail is granted, especially to drunken drivers.
"That is my biggest fight. Why would the legal system let him bail out after leaving the scene and refusing an alcohol test?" she said.
"Who knew he wasn't going to get in a car and drive home?
"If you're someone who has 17 unpaid parking tickets and you're booked on Friday, you need to wait until Monday to see the judge (for bail)."
She also wants laws to have stiffer penalties for repeat DUI offenders.
Stephanie Peaslee, of Layton, has her own hopes that laws will change, and she has a warning for teens.
Her daughter, 15-year-old Chelsea Peaslee, died after being hit by a vehicle on Interstate 15. Chelsea was crossing the freeway after dark with a cousin on Dec. 1, 2007.
The driver who hit her did not stop and was identified later after an investigation.
Peaslee has no documented evidence that the man was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, but the loss of her daughter has made her notice what she considers to be a counterproductive facet of Utah's traffic laws.
Peaslee complains that Utah provides drunken drivers involved in an accident a very rational -- though unethical -- motivation to leave the scene rather than stay and help someone who may be injured or dying.
If they stay, they face the stiff felony penalties for automobile homicide, which may include prison time.
But if they go home and sober up before being identified, the crime is only a misdemeanor.
Peaslee also mentioned teen safety in her section of a packet put together by UDOH that features the stories of the 16 teens who died in motor-vehicle crashes in 2007.
"I would like to let teenagers know that, even though you are trying to become independent, please be smart about what you choose to do," Peaslee wrote.
"Don't follow your friends if you know what they are doing is stupid or dangerous.
"Be a leader, not a follower."
On his way to work every day, Mark Maxson, a multimedia specialist at Weber State University, drives by the spot where his son died.
Adrian Maxson, 18, and his friends were leaving an Amnesty International event on April 3, 2007, when, "for one reason or another," his dad says, Adrian's glasses went out the window after midnight.
Adrian left his vehicle to look for the glasses on Harrison Boulevard near Weber State and was hit by a passing car and died.
Mark Maxson asked that teens remember that no item is so valuable that their lives should be risked to save it.
Police gave Mark Maxson his son's glasses after the crash. Ironically, they were unbroken.
He described his son as a social activist interested in human rights and the plight of the people of Darfur. He wore Che Guevara T-shirts and was especially jazzed when a former member of the Black Panthers spoke on campus.
"He was a 'change the world' kid," Maxson said of his son. "I'm sure you all know one of those."
Maxson said he's become a "better global citizen" since his son's death.
He followed his son's lead and now is involved with Amnesty International's Darfur campaigns.
Maxson stood out from some of the other parents, though, in not criticizing local laws or local conditions that need to be changed to make things safer. One comment he made, though, may reveal why mourning parents become citizen activists.
"They changed the lights out, changing the traffic flow (on Harrison Boulevard where Adrian was hit)," he said.
"I think to myself: If this had been done a year ago, would things be different?"
Tips for talking to teens
Utah Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert met Thursday with parents of teens who died in motor-vehicle crashes. He gave these four tips to help parents keep their teens safe on the road.
1. Establish rules, even regarding seat belts, speed limits and other issues that are already laws.
2. Limit the number of people in the car to the number of available seat belts.
3. Avoid night driving, and set a time after which a teen is forbidden to drive.
4. Talk about how to be a safe and defensive driver that anticipates mistakes or recklessness of others.
More information:
For teens: www.dont-drive-stupid.com
For parents: www.zerofatalities.com
Add Your Comment
I agree--drunk driving laws in the US are rediculously lax. In some European countries a drunk driving charge is a year's suspended license. On the second, you lose it for life. We have better public transportation now, let's make this happen! It should also be a federal offense that follows a person all over the US.
I like that this article painted a more positive image of Ms. Peaslee, whose daughter was killed trying to cross I-15. Other sources I've read tend to portray her as blaming the man who hit Chelsea, even though crossing the freeway was a pretty bad idea. I am glad that this article shows that she knows that a bad decision led to the loss of her daughter but is using a new awareness of hit-and-run laws to fight for a different, albeit connected, cause.
My heart goes out to everyone in this article. What a horrible experience for any parent to have to face. Thanks for showing strength and trying to use the loss for a positive change. It's a brave and selfless thing to do.