Humans Versus Corporations: Driver of recalled GM car cleared of negligent homicide

Rocket River · Nov 24, 2014

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/bu...2014/11/24/gm-ignition-switch-texas/19482007/

Texas judge Monday cleared a driver of criminal negligent homicide in a 2004 Texas crash after a lawyer for General Motors Co. said the air bags may not have inflated because of the ignition switch defect linked to at least 35 deaths.

In 2004, Candice Anderson — then 21 — lost control of her 2004 Saturn Ion while driving down a county road in East Texas. Her fiancé, Gene Mikale Erickson, was killed when the car left the road and hit a grove of trees head on. Air bags on both driver side and and passenger side failed to deploy.

Anderson was convicted of criminal negligent homicide and paid $2,500 in fines and court costs along with performing 260 hours of community service, counseling and five years of probation. She suffered injuries including broken ribs and a injured liver.

"Due to the wreck, and being charged with criminal negligent homicide, I lost my chosen career," Anderson said in a statement. "I trained and worked as a (certified nurse's aide). I applied and was denied positions at numerous jobs due to my criminal record. ... This has not been an easy road.

Van Zandt County District Judge Teresa Drum granted Anderson's application for a writ of habeas corpus — typically the last chance a person convicted of a crime who has exhausted appeals can use to try to get a conviction expunged, said Robert Hilliard, a lawyer for Anderson.

"GM knew this defect caused this death yet, instead of telling the truth, watched silently as Candice was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter. It took 10 years for GM to find its voice. How many district attorney's around the country are now wondering if they may have sent an innocent person to prison?" said Hilliard. "I call on GM to double its efforts to find all victims of this defect. If there were others who were wrongfully prosecuted, GM should take affirmative and aggressive steps to have those convictions immediately overturned."

On Monday, Hilliard released a letter from GM lawyer Richard Godfrey that confirmed "the crash involving Ms. Anderson is one in which the recall condition may have caused or contributed to the air bag nondeployment in the accident."

"Candice Anderson has lived with this wrongful conviction for too long," Hilliard says. "GM allowed the victim to be convicted. Now, on the day of the hearing to prove it was GM and not Candice, GM admits what it has known since 2004."

GM spokesman Jim Cain earlier in the day said the automaker would cooperate fully with the court. "Issues being discussed in this case are for local law enforcement and the courts to consider, and in a courtroom they are separate issues from the performance of the vehicle," he said. "That's why we have taken a neutral position on Ms. Anderson's case. It is appropriate for the court to determine the legal status of Ms. Anderson."

Cain also noted that the GM compensation program run by Kenneth Feinberg is set up to evaluate claims without consideration of contributory negligence.

compensation program, and said he would consider a prosecution as "extraordinary circumstances" worthy of additional compensation.

Anderson told CNN last month she would accept a settlement from the GM victims compensation fund. "I am ready for it to be over. I just want to move on. I don't have the endurance for a lawsuit and a long-drawn process," Anderson said.

In July, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. called on GM CEO Mary Barra to back a pardon and said the Justice Department may hold GM accountable for failing to make the defect known when she was prosecuted.

In July, the East Texas district attorney at the time, Leslie Poynter Dixon, wrote a letter to the Texas Board of Pardons, asking the conviction be set aside in the wake of the new information about the defect.

"I believe (GM's defect) caused her vehicle to seize up, locking her steering and making any control of her vehicle impossible. Based upon what I now know these issues were the direct cause of the loss of control of the vehicle," Dixon wrote. "It is my opinion that no action or omission of Ms. Anderson was the cause of the accident that led to her criminal charges. Had I known at the time that GM knew of these issues and has since admitted to such, I do not believe the grand jury would have indicted her."
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The Human . . .was found guilty of Negligent Homicide
Will The Corporation? If so what would be the result of it?

The human lost her fiance', her profession not to mention emotional and psychological pain
What will it cost The Corpotation? Probably less than 1% of their wealth and then we will wait for them to do it again.

Corporations can kill you with minimal effect . .. just pay some $$$ and act like it didn't happen.

Rocket River

Space Ghost · Nov 24, 2014

Oh Geez! Another biased article by Rocket River.

The girl should be locked up in prison for 10 years, not having her record expunged.

Gene Erickson, 25 Ben Wheeler, Texas

One fatality occurred in Texas on Nov. 15, 2004. Based on autopsy and federal crash data, The News has identified that victim as Gene Erickson, 25, of Canton, Texas. Erickson was the front-seat passenger in a 2004 Ion that ran off the road in rural Ben Wheeler, Texas, and hit a tree.

Erickson wasn’t wearing a seat belt and court records indicate the driver was on drugs at the time of the crash. The driver, Candice Anderson, was charged with intoxication manslaughter. GM court filings say Anderson was “intoxicated on illegal drugs,” according to police reports. In October 2007, she pleaded guilty to a lesser charge, criminally negligent homicide. Anderson and Erickson’s family sued GM and reached settlements before the recall.

From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20140411/AUTO0103/304110092#ixzz3K2AaoR7W
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Rocket River · Nov 24, 2014

Space Ghost said: ↑

Oh Geez! Another biased article by Rocket River.

The girl should be locked up in prison for 10 years, not having her record expunged.
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Just saw the story on ABC News and found this link for it
They states the intoxicant was a mild perscription drug and not alcohol etc.

Anderson had a trace amount of anti-anxiety medication in her system, but no other drugs or alcohol.
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http://www.cbsnews.com/news/texas-woman-convicted-in-death-later-linked-to-gm-defect/

Rocket River

rudan · Nov 24, 2014

Two solutions to all of rocket river problems..............
Ban corporations.
Ban white people from the earth.

Kyakko · Nov 24, 2014

rudan said: ↑

Two solutions to all of rocket river problems..............
Ban corporations.
Ban white people from the earth.
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A race issue... again?

Bandwagoner · Nov 24, 2014

Rocket River said: ↑

Just saw the story on ABC News and found this link for it
They states the intoxicant was a mild perscription drug and not alcohol etc.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/texas-woman-convicted-in-death-later-linked-to-gm-defect/

Rocket River
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So she got high on Xanax and killed someone. Xanax is worse than most drugs when driving to be honest. If I had a choice I would prefer people take meth, coke, mar1juana, pcp and many other drugs to anti anxiety drugs when driving.

Buck Turgidson · Nov 24, 2014

Bandwagoner said: ↑

If I had a choice I would prefer people take meth, coke, mar1juana, pcp and many other drugs to anti anxiety drugs when driving.
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I do find it funny that the incriminating article above is from the Detroit press and is quoting a GM lawyer.

Buck Turgidson · Nov 24, 2014

Ehhh...I re-read it, got the articles mixed up. Nevermind, carry on.

StupidMoniker · Nov 25, 2014

Bandwagoner said: ↑

So she got high on Xanax and killed someone. Xanax is worse than most drugs when driving to be honest. If I had a choice I would prefer people take meth, coke, mar1juana, pcp and many other drugs to anti anxiety drugs when driving.
Click to expand...

I tried a guy for 4 counts of DUI on PCP. Trust me, you don't want a guy driving a car on PCP, it is essentially random where the car is going to go.

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Humans Versus Corporations: Driver of recalled GM car cleared of negligent homicide

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