Would Josh be proud of his Dad?
I am sure that by now many people are familiar with the tragic death of St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Josh Hancock. If you have followed this story, you are likely aware that the 29 year-old had more than twice the legal blood alcohol limit when he crashed his car into a tow-truck. Read further, and you learn he was also talking on his cell phone when the crash happened. On top of that, he wasn’t wearing his seatbelt. So there are at least 3 things (*read on for #’s 4 and 5) that Josh did wrong that night. And he paid the price for it with his life.
At first, I thought it was sad that Josh made these fatal mistakes. But today I found out that this death really wasn’t his fault. I feel so stupid, since I always thought people should not drink in excess. I mean, unless someone is forcing you to drink (let’s say with an IV in your arm) you are pretty much supposed to know when you have had too much. I also feel dumb for thinking that cell phones impair your ability to drive. There are many states that are passing laws about driving while taking; but I guess I mistook that for common sense. Oh, and I also had to call up Bobby Hurley, and ask him why he preached wearing a seatbelt in all those PSA’s after he was almost killed. I am embarrassed that I believed in Bobby, when I guess wearing your seatbelt isn’t something that results in bodily injury.
If you are not detecting my sarcasm, then you likely find nothing wrong with the lawsuit that Josh Hancock’s father has filed in regard to his son’s death. He is suing the bar that served Josh drinks. I have heard of this before, where bartenders are held accountable for serving drinks to drunks. I don’t agree with it, but I have heard of it. The thing that really sticks out is that not only is Mr. Hancock suing the bar, he is suing the towing company that owns the tow-truck his son hit, AND the driver of the car that was being towed. Let’s review this again, so all the kids can learn a good lesson. He is suing the driver of the car that was in need of assistance, because his drunk son was talking on his cell phone, while not wearing a seatbelt, and crashed his car into the tow-truck. And died.
Where has common sense gone? Where has personal responsibility gone? Does Mrs. Hancock actually believe that this person whose car was stalled caused his son’s death? According to the police report, the car stalled after being spun out when some other bad driver cut him off. So if we continue Mr. Hancock’s line of thinking, we need to locate that driver, and sue them for spinning this other guy out to begin with. And while we are doing that, shouldn’t we sue that driver’s driving instructor from high school, who obviously didn’t teach him not to cut people off?
Ideally, the judge or jury involved in this case will see past this ridiculous grab for post mortem satisfaction, and throw the case out. I had a family member (my 22 year old cousin) who died from blunt head trauma after getting dunk and falling off a bridge. I guess when my family came to the realization that it was a sad event, and we wished my cousin hadn’t had so much to drink, we were misplacing our grief. Maybe if Mr. Hancock was in the family, we would have channeled our grief into anger, and sued the city where this happened. Or better yet, the inventor of gravity!
*And if you want to know about Josh Hancock’s 4 and 5 mistakes:
I read that Josh was speeding at the time of the crash, and police found 8.55 grams of marijuana in his vehicle. But I am sure Mr. Hancock will find the people other than his son that are responsible for that as well. As for me, I will expect to be contacted by Mr. Hancock’s lawyers in the next few days. But in court I plan to blame my parents for instilling the values in me that made me write this column. Then I will sue them.
May 24th, 2007 at 9:49 pm
That is absolutely ridiculous. This guy should get a Darwin Award.
It’s a sad story, but it’s good to see that CrapFilter is back in action.