This angers me because if it were you or I that was driving over 100-130kms/hour and this caused someone to die...you can bet we would do jail time for it. It bothers me that being with fame status live by a different set of rules!

By Palmbchprincess on Friday, February 4, 2005 - 11:37 pm:

I'm clueless... who is Dan Heatly?

By Unschoolmom on Saturday, February 5, 2005 - 01:50 am:

NHL player who was driving a car when it crashed and killed another NHL player who was with him.

And no, I don't think an ordinary person would have ness. be doing jail time. This was a young guy with no previous record who made a dumb decision that he's made clear will haunt him for the rest of his life. He's not a risk to society and his crime was not malicious. I can see an ordinary person coming out of the courtroom with the same sentence he did.

If anything I think his fame has been a minus as he's been under scrutiny no ordinary person would get.

By Palmbchprincess on Saturday, February 5, 2005 - 03:18 am:

Was he just driving at high speeds? (I have no idea what the conversion of kms/hr to mph is, but I assume that's a high speed) In the states it would not be unusual to get probation/driver suspension for an accidental death for the reasons Dawn mentioned. Now if it was DUI, there would be jail time...

By Ginny~moderator on Saturday, February 5, 2005 - 08:53 am:

1 km = .6214 miles, so it would be 62 to 80 mph. Depending on the road and the area, this is not an unusual speed. When I drive the Blue Route, a limited-access high speed road just west of Philadelphia, the "limit" is 55 mph, I drive 65 if traffic is moving smoothly, and most people drive 70 to 80 or 85. I've driven on Interstate 195 at 70 to 75 because all traffic is moving at that speed.

And yes, if it was his first accident, if he was not driving "recklessly" - by which I mean if the road was clear and he wasn't dodging in and out of traffic - then the courts consider this a tragic accident, and most drivers in that situation would get probation or parole or a license suspension of some length and a humungous fine, but no jail time. While he might have been treated more courteously because of his fame and the inevitable news reporters on the spot, not getting jail time for someting like this is not unusual in the U.S.

By Marcia on Saturday, February 5, 2005 - 08:55 am:

I'm not sure what the speed limit was, or if he was going 130 over the speed limit. Highway driving is 100km/hr, which is 60mph. Most people drive 130 on the highways.
Again, I don't know all the details, so I'm not defending the guy, just saying we all drive that speed.
Off highway driving is normally 50km/hr, or 80 on small highways.

By Dawnk777 on Saturday, February 5, 2005 - 10:33 am:

115 Kilometres = 71.4576871072934 Miles

If 115 km/hour is about 70 mph, how was that TOO fast? I drive 70 on the freeway ALL the time and people pass me like I'm standing still!

65 Miles = 104.60736 Kilometres

Our speed limit is 65, but I assure you, plenty of people are driving WAY faster than 65,

By Paulas on Saturday, February 5, 2005 - 01:51 pm:

I agree that we all drive that fast on the Highway but this was not the case here. It was a residental street. Anyway, here are some of the articles relating to the incident. Alcolhol had been consumed but was below the level considered necessary for a DUI

http://proicehockey.about.com/b/a/032345.htm

http://www.cbc.ca/pcgi-bin/templates/sportsView.cgi?/news/2003/10/10/Sports/heatley031010

By Paulas on Saturday, February 5, 2005 - 01:54 pm:

I just remembered something. When I was younger a guy in my hometime had pulled out to pass on a double line. It was a hill and he couldn't see. This guy was something like 17-18. Anyway, he hit an oncoming car and killed the passenger. He spent two years in jail for it. Mind you, this accident didn't involve another vehicle.

By Palmbchprincess on Saturday, February 5, 2005 - 02:11 pm:

This happened in GA, so I'd be willing to bet a big part of the reason he got no jail time was the overcrowding of US jails. The alcohol he tested for was so low it wouldn't even result in a ticket, and the most he would have gotten if no one was killed would have been reckless driving. This is sad, without question, but regular people have been involved in worse where there was no jail time. It's very sad that a teen would be sentenced to 2 years for an accident, because he is already doomed to live with that for the rest of his life. One example of the difference here is Laura Bush. She ran a stop sign as a teen, and hit and killed a classmate. She wasn't famous at the time, but never served time for it. We just don't have the room in jails for things like that.

By Dawnk777 on Saturday, February 5, 2005 - 04:00 pm:

Oh, I didn't realize it was a residential street! That would be completely different.

\newurlhttp://www.jsonline.com/news/wauk/mar04/212007.asp,Girl killed while waiting for school bus}

The girl who was driving the car got 9 months in jail. She was also speeding down a residential street.

By Paulas on Saturday, February 5, 2005 - 05:58 pm:

After reading more, I am beginning to rethink my position on his sentence. Here is a report:

http://sports.sympatico.msn.ca/Home/ContentPosting.aspx?feedname=CP-AllSports&newsitemid=32707023

He must do 150 speeches on the dangers of speeding to kids, his car must be court approved and will not be allowed to exceed 112km/hr and he is prevented from driving (I'm assuming during his 3 year probation) except for work, grocery store or to attend speeches.

Given that the family of the deceased (a young hockey player) testified that they have forgiven him and would prefer he not go to jail and have two hockey careers ended, I'm starting to think the sentence was somewhat fair.