OK, so you've bragged about your speeding and reckless driving for years. Some in South Dakota would even say it has become a point of pride. You've become something of a folk hero because of your famed lead foot. Of course, now that you're recklessness has taken an innocent life, you're looking for any excuse that will stick.
SIOUX FALLS, South Dakota (AP) -- Rep. Bill Janklow may very well use his diabetes or other health problems as a defense when he goes on trial on manslaughter charges in a traffic accident that killed a motorcyclist.
Janklow's lawyer, Ed Evans, and the congressman himself will not publicly discuss what his defense will be. And the accident report and an affidavit from Janklow filed this week make no mention of a blackout or poor vision -- symptoms that can be caused by diabetes....
Janklow, 64, is charged with speeding, running a stop sign, reckless driving and manslaughter in an accident August 16 that killed Randy Scott of Hardwick, Minnesota. Prosecutors say he was going 71 mph. The trial is set to start December 1.
My God, man, you've had 12 speeding tickets and three accidents over the course of your driving career. Some would say that you've been a fatality looking for a place to happen- it's just too bad that it wasn't your own. Instead, your impatience and recklessness have cost an innocent motorcyclist his life. Don't you think it's about time that you take some responsibility for your reckless disregard for the wellbeing of others on the roads?
Bill Janklow, you are certainly most deserving of the "honor" that is the DUMASS AWARD. More than that, however, don't you think it is time for you to own up to the reality that your irresponsibility and recklessness were responsible for this senseless fatality? People go to jail for less, and perhaps it's time for you to do the same. It won't bring Randy Scott back to his family, but seeing you do some hard time might just leave them with the sense that justice has been done. You committed murder with a motor vehicle; your job cannot and should not shield you from the consequences of your crime.
Speaking only for myself, Rep. Janklow, you make me sick. You seem to live in a world where you are above the law, though your job is representing the people of South Dakota in making the laws that govern this country. I sincerely believe that there is a special place in Hell for people like you. The sooner you go there, the better off all of us will be.
