# Anyone remember this story **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 11, 2002, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-story/97470 "2002-03-11T04:08:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2002, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-story/97470/1 "2002-03-11T04:08:31Z")
(I couldn’t find previous posts on a search on the guy’s name, so I’m starting a new thread) [Report: Brakes on car that killed driver’s mother were shot](http://www.naplesnews.com/02/03/florida/d770426a.htm) Jeez, I wonder why the brakes were shot. Couldn’t be drag racing, could it? At least one of them is currently where he belongs, even if it wasn’t the mom-killer (whose current status I cannot find). Personally, I’m shocked there would even be a trial. Obviously this is not a stand-up guy. Here’s a clue: You **murdered** your own mother through your gross negligence. Plead guilty and hope the judge has heart enough to give you a quick trip to the gas chamber. On another note: Those who remember this may remember how every news outlet in America (alright, slight exagerration) carried the story, but where’s the follow-up? Will the other Florida woman currently in the news have her story lost in the time before the trial? [rhetorical question]Why can’t news organizations finish what they start?[/rhetorical question] ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2002, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-story/97470/2 "2002-03-11T04:25:37Z")
> [@](#): > > Report: Brakes on car that killed driver’s mother were shot > UMATILLA — The rear brakes of a car belonging to a 21-year-old man who unintentionally killed his mother while drag racing were not working because of wear, according to a report on the accident. The report also showed that shortly after Dwight Samples slammed his Ford Mustang into the rear of his mother’s car while drag racing at 100 mph, he called his father on his cell phone and shouted: “It’s Momma! I have killed Momma!” From [http://www.google.com/search?q=cache:wpZr6gtUig0C:www.naplesnews.com/cgi-bin/sendto.pl%3Flocation%3Dflorida+brakes+car+mother+killed+drag+racing&hl=en](http://www.google.com/search?q=cache:wpZr6gtUig0C:www.naplesnews.com/cgi-bin/sendto.pl%3Flocation%3Dflorida+brakes+car+mother+killed+drag+racing&hl=en) As to whether it got followed up, check the Naples newspaper since then. I’m sure there are more stories. Nationally, no one gives a shit after the initial headline/soundbite grabber. Life as we know it continues to march downhill. Welcome to the Modern Times. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2002, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-story/97470/3 "2002-03-11T04:35:12Z")
That’s what I linked. New boards don’t change the color. It’s the underlined piece. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2002, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-story/97470/4 "2002-03-11T06:00:21Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by D\_Odds \* > \*\* Personally, I’m shocked there would even be a trial. Obviously this is not a stand-up guy._\* The lynch mob mentality is alive and well and living where you do. New rule of your jurisdiction: people who are not stand up guys in D\_Odds’ opinion, do not get trials. They just go straight to jail (nah, fuck it, the gallows, why muck about?) on the basis of a media report. Riddle me this, D\_Odds: **Either** a man is very obviously guilty, therefore, at his trial he can’t but be found guilty, which I’m sure you think is what he deserves, so what is your problem? **Or** there are doubts about whether he is actually guilty, in which case you would no doubt believe he should have a trial, which is what he is going to get. So what are you shocked about exactly? ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2002, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-story/97470/5 "2002-03-11T06:38:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Princhester \* > The lynch mob mentality is alive and well and living where you do. > > New rule of your jurisdiction: people who are not stand up guys in D\_Odds’ opinion, do not get trials. They just go straight to jail (nah, fuck it, the gallows, why muck about?) on the basis of a media report. > > Riddle me this, D\_Odds: > > **Either** a man is very obviously guilty, therefore, at his trial he can’t but be found guilty, which I’m sure you think is what he deserves, so what is your problem? > > **Or** there are doubts about whether he is actually guilty, in which case you would no doubt believe he should have a trial, which is what he is going to get. > > So what are you shocked about exactly? A stand-up guy who was drag racing and ended up killing his mother should enter a guilty plea and save the rest of his family the expense and heartache of a trial. “Yes, Dad, I killed Mom, but I think I should go to trial, plead not guilty, and try and weasel my sentence down as much as possible,” is not a stand-up guy. This isn’t a case of whether he is guilty; it’s a case of just how guilty. And yes, I was a little over the top in my statement. Still, he was engaging in a deadly illegal activity when he killed his own mother (there’s enough physical evidence that this isn’t in question). How does he plead not guilty? [I say the same thing in the Andrea Yates case - why would this woman who murdered her own children want to fight the case? Make the deal to avoid the chair (or not) and accept what you’ve earned - not that she’s likely to ever be free regardless the outcome] ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2002, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-story/97470/6 "2002-03-11T07:11:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by D\_Odds \* > **This isn’t a case of whether he is guilty; it’s a case of just how guilty. And yes, I was a little over the top in my statement. Still, he was engaging in a deadly illegal activity when he killed his own mother (there’s enough physical evidence that this isn’t in question). How does he plead not guilty?** To a certain extent, I missed your point which was not that he shouldn’t be offered a trial but that he should plead guilty and thereby avoid the necessity for one. For that I apologise. However, there appear to me to be three relevant near certain facts. Firstly, the guy in question and his remaining family know the emotions, the relationships and the facts better than you and the media do. Secondly they, and his lawyers, know the consequences of various options available and what’s he’s been charged with exactly and the law better than you and the media do. Thirdly, they perceive that for one reason or another it is advantageous for him to plead not guilty to the particular charges that have been laid. And unless you know precisely what he’s been charged with, and what his grounds of defence are, you are unlikely to be in a position to say, “he’s guilty and it’s in the best interests of him and his family for him to plead guilty” without being exceedingly presumptious IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2002, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-story/97470/7 "2002-03-11T11:49:33Z")
> [@](#): > > The report released Thursday said the brake wear\*\* kept Staples from stopping his 1987 Mustang before it skidded 300 feet into the rear of the Chevrolet\*\* Cavalier containing his mother and Green, who were out to look at Christmas lights It was the brake wear?? I’m thinking it was the velocity and stupidity that cause the 300 ft skid into fiery death. BTW, it’s nice to be back.:d ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2002, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-story/97470/8 "2002-03-11T12:05:57Z")
> [@](#): > > “Yes, Dad, I killed Mom, but I think I should go to trial, plead not guilty, and try and weasel my sentence down as much as possible,” is not a stand-up guy. On the other hand, perhaps his family feel they’ve lost enough already and don’t want to see him go to jail for a very long time. Perhaps they feel that living with the guilt and pain will be punishment enough and are behind him in going to trial to plead not guilty. We can’t know what the family are thinking at this point. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2002, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-story/97470/9 "2002-03-11T15:03:59Z")
You are right; I can’t know how the family feels. I can pretty much only relate it to how (a) I would feel and (b) how I think my family would feel. Not having been in anything remotely similar, it is very hard to accurately predict reactions, but my parents raised me and I’m trying to raise my children to understand that one’s actions have consequences. If you behave in a negligent manner (say by, oh I don’t know, drag racing down city streets), you should readily accept the full weight of the punishment **earned**. I wouldn’t be hung out to dry, but I’m fairly certain that ‘doing the right thing’ in my and my families’ view would be accepting guilt and punishment readily. Now, this being the pit, I didn’t apply the full logic behind a soft rant. No, I don’t know what he’s been charged with. No, I don’t know what, if any, deals have been put on the table. No, I don’t know how the family is reacting. But I’ll make coherent arguments in GD. This is the pit, and I want to see this man brought before the court in chains for negligent homicide and his gene’s effectively removed from the pool. (Long-term incarceration is enough to satisfy that) There is a lack of information available, and after this story’s fifteen minutes of fame it was dropped, like so many stories before it. I’d really like to know how this turns out, and I’d like some more details. Not the minutiae, mind you, but simple facts about the court case. I’d like to see this made an example to other drag racers of the dangers of using city streets as racing strips. I know the only reason this story warranted national attention was the relationship, but now it has (alright, had) national attention and should be used as another tool to try and teach the (in their minds) immortals behind the wheels of a car of the dangers of their actions. As for calling ‘brake wear’ the cause, that just lights another fire under my buttocks. He skidded 300 feet and slammed into the _back_ of a vehicle with sufficient force to cause to kill the passengers in the lead vehicle. Brake wear my ass! The brakes were working well enough to put the car into a 300 foot skid. I’d hate to see that statement being used in any way, shape or form in the man’s defense. I’m rambling now - more coffee needed. This was a rant. Reasoned statements can be found here: [Should the police be above the law?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=103079) ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2002, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-remember-this-story/97470/10 "2002-03-12T14:59:05Z")
Well then, essentially your rant is that people should be accountable for their actions? In which case, I’m 100% on your side. Many of the problems we face right now stem from no one taking responsiblity for their own actions. It makes me sick when I see people suing venues for allowing them to gamble their money away, and suing manufacturers for not making it impossible to use things the wrong way… get a grip and take responsiblity! And that includes young Mr Drag Racer, who killed two people through irresponsibility and recklessness, but is pleading not guilty and will no doubt blame the brakes that failed to stop him when he was exceeding the speed limit and driving in an unsafe manner. If he successfully sues the brake manufacturers, I think we should stop the world and start it over from scratch.