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Legislators fail in effort to pass fatal-wreck bills

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The fight to make drivers more accountable if they cause a fatal wreck hit a snag this week.

Some frustrated state and local officials again were left wondering what it will take to replace minor traffic fines with stronger penalties in fatal wrecks caused by negligence, as is the case in at least 20 other states.

Two identical bills that aimed to enact a vehicular-homicide statute in South Carolina won't make the May 1 cutoff for legislation to be considered before the General Assembly adjourns June 1.

One bill received approval from a House subcommittee but didn't make it out of the Judiciary Committee. A Senate bill didn't go anywhere, legislators say, mostly because so much time was spent on the state budget bill.

The vehicular-homicide bills would have increased the penalty to imprisonment, steep fines or license suspension for those who caused a fatality or severe injury in a wreck. The bills were introduced in March by Republican legislators from Spartanburg, Sen. John D. Hawkins and Rep. W. Douglas Smith, at the request of one of their constituents -- a woman whose grandson was killed by a driver almost four years ago.

Michael Lenderman, 27, was riding a moped on St. John's Street in Spartanburg on Aug. 8, 2002, when a Chevrolet van cut in front of him. Michael died, and the driver -- deemed a repeat offender, and driving under suspension and uninsured at the time -- received a $116 fine.

"When somebody loses a loved one in an accident like that, they feel like there is no value put on the lives of their loved ones," said Lily Lenderman, Michael's grandmother, who has been pushing for accountability since his death. "It's just heartbreaking."

RECURRING RESULT

The vehicular-homicide bills are the latest in a series of failed attempts to get legislation addressing the issue on Gov. Mark Sanford's desk.

Rep. Kenny Bingham, R-Lexington County, introduced a misdemeanor death-by-vehicle bill in 2000 after the son of one of his constituents was killed when a driver pulled out in front him. The driver got a ticket.

Bingham said the bill, modeled after a North Carolina law in which drivers can be charged even if they unintentionally cause a death, was opposed by fellow representatives who said, "Accidents happen."

"Yeah, accidents happen," Bingham said. "But when you break the law and the accident results in death, there should be something on record to note that, make them pay for their actions."

Each year since then, Bingham has introduced the legislation and watched it get tabled or lost in the backlog of proposed legislation.

"I don't understand why there isn't a sense of urgency," Bingham said. "If there's some problem, let's change it. It appears so simple to me, but for some reason, it isn't, and I've never gotten a clear answer why."

Rep. Richard Chalk, R-Hilton Head Island, said the vehicular-homicide bill proposed by Smith was opposed in the House Judiciary Committee.

"The real concern for a number of people is that in most incidents, it's simply an accident," Chalk said, noting that many defense lawyers are opposed to such statutes. "And they think the bills would be criminalizing accidents.

"There should be some consequences, I just don't think everybody can agree on what."

CHARGING OPTIONS LIMITED

Since October, at least four people have died in wrecks in Bluffton and on Hilton Head caused by drivers who didn't abide by traffic laws, such as swerving, running a red light or driving too fast for conditions.

The vehicular-homicide bills would not have addressed those drivers because, in most cases, they were not driving without a license or with a suspended license, were not driving uninsured, or were not deemed habitual traffic offenders. And prosecutors and investigating agencies couldn't levy more serious charges because they were not able to prove reckless intent, which is needed in South Carolina to issue stiffer charges like reckless homicide.

Local legislators said they'd look into finding a solution through legislation, but they found it would take a lot of research and likely wouldn't be addressed in this session.

"A vehicle is an inherently dangerous thing that comes with great risk," said Sen. Scott Richardson, R-Hilton Head. "The point is, where does an accident cross the lines into being gross negligence?

"To be that it has to be willful and wanton behavior, that's very hard to prove."

Richardson is researching legislation to prohibit motorists from using cell phones while driving.

Meanwhile, Rep. Bill Herbkersman, R-Bluffton, said he is considering "bobtailing" -- or attaching -- a vehicular-homicide clause to an existing bill this session.

"If we can get some kind of baseline, we can refine it over the next several years," he said, noting that he's meeting with Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner and 14th Judicial Circuit Solicitor Duffie Stone on May 5 to discuss it. "We're still trying to figure out what's been holding these bills back.

"An effective law will take a lot of time. It needs to be well-thought-out."

Meanwhile, Stone gets phone calls from angry relatives of victims who want to know why the drivers who caused the death of their loved ones only are charged with traffic violations.

"I don't mind getting the phone calls," Stone said. "The hard part is saying, 'I can't fix this.'"

But a fix is needed sooner than later, the solicitor said.

"Every day we have one of these deaths," he said, "it's a day too late for the legislat

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