In New Jersey a white woman by the name of Susan Hyland with 30 prior arrests for drunk driving was sentenced to probation after striking and killing a 'black' 16 year old pedestrian with her vehicle and leaving the scene of the crime. Also in New Jersey a black man by the name of Garrett Carter was sentenced to 18 years in prison for a drunk driving incident that killed an adult but he NOT leave the scene of the crime.
What's wrong with this story? This is a case of white vs black. Privileged versus non privileged. It's clear to see that both of the cases are closely related but the black caught a bad break solely because of race.
Here's the article on the woman's case:
New Jersey’s highest court on Monday upheld a probation sentence for a woman who fled the scene of a fatal accident while driving on a suspended license.
Susan Hyland was admitted to a state drug court program over the objection of prosecutors following the Pennsauken Township crash, which took the life of 16-year-old Quason Turner.
In a unanimous ruling that attorneys say will curtail challenges raised when judges divert people into drug court programs, the state Supreme Court found the five-year term of probation was within the bounds of state law.
According to court records, Hyland struck and killed Turner on Route 130 in March 2016, fleeing the scene. The woman’s niece, who was a passenger in the car, secretly called 911 to report the accident, the records show.
At the time, Hyland already had a “slew of arrests and convictions” and told police she fled because her license had been “suspended for a long time.”
She admitted to drinking half a pint of vodka earlier in the day and a court-ordered evaluation later found she suffered from five substance abuse disorders.
Hyland sought entry to drug court, a treatment-focused alternative to prison for people who commit crimes while in the grip of addiction. Prosecutors in Camden County opposed her admission, arguing the fact that she fled the scene of a serious accident meant she posed a “danger to the community.”
According to court records, Hyland, now 44, was previously convicted of six offenses in state Superior Court and eleven in municipal court, including burglary and drug distribution.
She pleaded guilty in 2017 to a range of charges, including knowingly leaving the scene of a fatal motor vehicle accident. The trial judge sentenced her to five year of probation as part of the drug court program.
Prosecutors lost an appeal, and the state Supreme Court took up the case. Writing for the court, Justice Lee Solomon noted the state Legislature gave judges “greater discretion to place the person on special probation” when it passed laws establishing drug court.
The court found the sentence was within the bounds of the discretion of the judge, who weighed the “unique characteristics and circumstances” of the case. The ruling solidifies that drug court sentences can only be appealed in strict circumstances in which the sentence runs afoul of the state law.
Here's the article on Garrett Carter:
A Newark man has been sentenced to 18 years in state prison for striking and killing a pedestrian while driving drunk.
Garrett Carter, 52, hit Steven Dawkins as he crossed the 200 block of West Market Street in Newark on Sept. 22, 2017, according to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office.
Carter had a blood alcohol content of .168 when his minivan struck the 39-year-old Orange man. The legal limit is .08. He was convicted of vehicular homicide in March.
Superior Court judge Michael Ravin, sitting in Newark, issued the sentence on Monday.
“The judge’s sentence is a clear message that driving while intoxicated, with its traumatic effect on society, will not be tolerated," assistant prosecutor Brian Pollock said in a statement. “Hopefully, the sentence will help prevent others from engaging in the conduct that has cost Steven Dawkins’ family so much."
Here we have 3 families torn apart. 16 year old Quason Turner's family, the Carter family and the family of Steven Dawkins who Garrett Carter was reportedly responsible for killing while intoxicated behind the wheel. It's sad news but what makes it more sad is that Susan Hyland doesn't have to serve any prison time and Garrett Carter has pretty much a LIFE SENTENCE having to serve 18 years at the age of 52.
Susan Hyland's family is happy. Happy that's she got away with a crime that a black man was sentenced to 18 years for. Her crime was even more dangerous. She actually left the scene of the crime and was only sentenced to probation.
This is a case of a privileged woman vs a black man. These situations seem to go this route very often in the judicial system. When the suspect or the victim is BLACK, nobody seems to care.
We ask that Garrett Carter's sentence is shortened and that he be placed in a long term treatment center for some help. Whites get the help they need so blacks should also be offered that same help. Let's make the law work the same in everyone's favor.
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Petition By
Richard R Woolfolk
