Hey everyone,
I received an interesting call from the State Attorney's Office yesterday. They explained to me that the drunk driver who hit me and ran from the scene has broken house arrest, and is now in jail pending a court date on Monday. Unfortunately, I don't know terribly much about what the state of Florida does to folks who break house arrest which was offered in a plea bargain.
The story on what happened - On 27 August 2002 at 2am, I was getting a jumpstart from the local friendly Florida Highway Patrolman/ State Trooper, when a car going 70 mph slammed into the left rear corner of my car and kept going until it came apart on the roadway. I was between my car and the FHP cruiser at the time of the impact. The trooper caught up with the driver of the vehicle who had a BAC of .281. There were roughly nine felony counts from the incident, but due to a plea bargain, the woman was sentenced with house arrest for two years and probation. She was sentenced three weeks ago. Up to that point, she went through three attorneys, claiming she was not responsible for this.
At one court hearing prior to her decision to accept a plea bargain, I caught her pointing at me and laughing at my limp. Because of what happened, I now have arthritis in my legs at the age of 21, and have a wonderful neurological disorder - epilepsy with grand mal seizures. I don't want to sound bitter and despiccable, but I really want to go so I can see her in that flashy orange jumpsuit and shackles. After the incident, she was in jail for all of five hours. Because of this latest issue, she has been in since the 2 December 2003. I honestly hope that she gets some time in "pound me in the ..." prison so I can sleep at night. I have to live with the effects of the incident until the day I die, she had close to fifteen months without any form of punishment. Granted, I would appreciate having close to fifteen months without punishment in the event that I commit a crime, but something tells me I won't be so fortunate. Then again, had she not been bailed out, the case would have gone quicker. So much for a speedy criminal justice system.
Anyway, is it normal for me to feel that I will get joy from seeing my assailant in shackles and the orange jumpsuit? Is it unreasonable for me to have this strong desire for prison time? Am I a bad person for finding joy in the person violating house arrest resulting in jail time? I have little faith in the justice system, as the Prosecutor's don't seem to give a crap, and the judges, while fair, are a little too accomodating to some folks.
- Ian in Tampa
99 SE Sport T-Red MTX 60k
