Miriam Frankl (October 17, 2009) |
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Dennis Jerry Sullivan was on his motorcycle and stopped at a light on Baltimore National Pike in Ellicott City when he was rammed from behind by a Toyota Camry driven by a woman whose blood-alcohol content registered more than three times the legal limit.
It was Sept. 7, 2003, and a rookie Howard County police officer mistakenly thought the 43-year-old victim wasn't badly hurt. He handed the 35-year-old driver of the Camry, Susan Elizabeth Williams, a ticket charging her with negligent driving. He planned to investigate and file other charges later.
When Sullivan died four hours after the crash, prosecutors rushed to dismiss the ticket so they could build a better case. But Williams quickly pleaded guilty to the minor driving offense and paid a $275 fine - an outcome that illustrates why police and prosecutors in a current Baltimore case must move cautiously.
In the Howard case, a judge ruled that Williams' plea and fine payment prevented the state from pursuing more serious charges, including vehicular manslaughter, saying that because she had pleaded guilty to an offense considered a lesser form of homicide, double jeopardy attached.
In other words, prosecutors couldn't try Williams twice for what the law says was essentially the same crime. They were able to convict her of driving under the influence and she was sentenced to a year in jail; a manslaughter conviction could have sent her away for 10 years.
This is part of what's complicating the case against Thomas Meighan Jr., the owner of a white Ford F250 truck that police say was involved in the hit-and-run accident that killed Johns Hopkins junior Miriam Frankl on St. Paul Street on Oct. 16. Police have outlined a terrifying four-hour rampage in which witnesses reported that the truck ran red lights, went the wrong way on streets and tailgated other drivers before hitting the 20-year-old Chicago-area student.
At the time of the latest accident, Meighan was free on a $100,000 bail on another drunken driving and hit-and-run charge. He has 21 motor vehicle convictions on his record, including six for driving while intoxicated and two for driving under the influence.
But police and prosecutors have not charged him with vehicular manslaughter or negligent homicide, saying they need to conclusively place him in the driver's seat of the truck when it hit Frankl. Two witnesses identify Meighan as the driver at various parts of the city, but prosecutors on Tuesday pared down some of the charges filed by police. They won't say why, but it could be to avoid the very problem prosecutors had in the Howard County case in 2003.
Law enforcement authorities say they know that the public and grieving relatives cannot understand how and why Meighan has not yet been charged with more serious crimes. But they want to proceed slowly to avoid the pitfalls encountered six years ago in Howard.
After that case, prosecutors and police ordered officers to not immediately issue citations in accidents involving serious injuries. That remains the rule today.
Howard County State's Attorney Dario J. Broccolino recalled the Sullivan case from 2003 as a painful day for law enforcement. "Any time you can't deliver some measure of justice to a family that has suffered this loss, it's frustrating," he said Wednesday.
Lessons learned from that case require prosecutors to move slowly in the Baltimore City case.
"The last thing you want to do is give a guy a ticket," Broccolino said.
Law enforcement sources have described a potential manslaughter case against Meighan as circumstantial - they'd have to convince a jury that it's logical that because he was seen driving the truck erratically in one part of the city, he was driving it when it struck the student. That's not a strong case given that jurors have to decide beyond reasonable doubt.
"Not only does this investigation take time, in Maryland, with negligent homicide, the degree of proof you have to provide is almost overwhelming," Broccolino said, adding that most hit-and-run cases are built on circumstantial evidence. "I can show you cases here where people were speeding, not drunk, but doing a number of illegal acts, but the court has ruled that it's not negligent."
It was Sept. 7, 2003, and a rookie Howard County police officer mistakenly thought the 43-year-old victim wasn't badly hurt. He handed the 35-year-old driver of the Camry, Susan Elizabeth Williams, a ticket charging her with negligent driving. He planned to investigate and file other charges later.
When Sullivan died four hours after the crash, prosecutors rushed to dismiss the ticket so they could build a better case. But Williams quickly pleaded guilty to the minor driving offense and paid a $275 fine - an outcome that illustrates why police and prosecutors in a current Baltimore case must move cautiously.
In the Howard case, a judge ruled that Williams' plea and fine payment prevented the state from pursuing more serious charges, including vehicular manslaughter, saying that because she had pleaded guilty to an offense considered a lesser form of homicide, double jeopardy attached.
In other words, prosecutors couldn't try Williams twice for what the law says was essentially the same crime. They were able to convict her of driving under the influence and she was sentenced to a year in jail; a manslaughter conviction could have sent her away for 10 years.
This is part of what's complicating the case against Thomas Meighan Jr., the owner of a white Ford F250 truck that police say was involved in the hit-and-run accident that killed Johns Hopkins junior Miriam Frankl on St. Paul Street on Oct. 16. Police have outlined a terrifying four-hour rampage in which witnesses reported that the truck ran red lights, went the wrong way on streets and tailgated other drivers before hitting the 20-year-old Chicago-area student.
At the time of the latest accident, Meighan was free on a $100,000 bail on another drunken driving and hit-and-run charge. He has 21 motor vehicle convictions on his record, including six for driving while intoxicated and two for driving under the influence.
But police and prosecutors have not charged him with vehicular manslaughter or negligent homicide, saying they need to conclusively place him in the driver's seat of the truck when it hit Frankl. Two witnesses identify Meighan as the driver at various parts of the city, but prosecutors on Tuesday pared down some of the charges filed by police. They won't say why, but it could be to avoid the very problem prosecutors had in the Howard County case in 2003.
Law enforcement authorities say they know that the public and grieving relatives cannot understand how and why Meighan has not yet been charged with more serious crimes. But they want to proceed slowly to avoid the pitfalls encountered six years ago in Howard.
After that case, prosecutors and police ordered officers to not immediately issue citations in accidents involving serious injuries. That remains the rule today.
Howard County State's Attorney Dario J. Broccolino recalled the Sullivan case from 2003 as a painful day for law enforcement. "Any time you can't deliver some measure of justice to a family that has suffered this loss, it's frustrating," he said Wednesday.
Lessons learned from that case require prosecutors to move slowly in the Baltimore City case.
"The last thing you want to do is give a guy a ticket," Broccolino said.
Law enforcement sources have described a potential manslaughter case against Meighan as circumstantial - they'd have to convince a jury that it's logical that because he was seen driving the truck erratically in one part of the city, he was driving it when it struck the student. That's not a strong case given that jurors have to decide beyond reasonable doubt.
"Not only does this investigation take time, in Maryland, with negligent homicide, the degree of proof you have to provide is almost overwhelming," Broccolino said, adding that most hit-and-run cases are built on circumstantial evidence. "I can show you cases here where people were speeding, not drunk, but doing a number of illegal acts, but the court has ruled that it's not negligent."
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Miriam Frankl was a blessing upon this earth. An inordinately bright, gracious and beautiful young woman, she was destined for certain greatness. One cannot overstate the meaning of this loss. That the public forum has not been torn asunder over the horror which befell her at the hands of this despicable wretch is an indelible mark of shame upon us all. If public authorities have any duty to the public they serve, it is to keep the likes of this miscreant as far away as possible from the dutiful public. Miriam Frankl is forever in my thoughts and prayers.
hopkins1980 (11/01/2009, 10:04 AM )